Life With No Green
by amused4ever
Summary: Title kinda sums it up. A person's most prized possesion is his identity...what happens when someone takes it away? Beast Boy is as normal as a green kid can be. Then again, there's always a chance 'average life' can catch up. FULL SUMMARY INSIDE bbrae
1. Origin MUST READ

**There are many debates revolving around the origin of Beast Boy, the green-changeling of the Teen Titans, and this fanfic is based much on Beast Boy's story. So I've taken the origin story of Beast Boy's creator, _the_ ****Arnold**** Drake, and tweaked some parts so it fits with _my_ story...MUHAHAHA! Don't worry though, it still makes sense...anyway, you HAVE to read the following origin account in order for the actual fanfic story to make sense to you. If you don't, prepare to be ADMITTINGLY CONFUSED. My story is pretty good, but you won't think so if you don't know what the hell is going on. SO, without any FURHTER ADUE, Beast Boy's origin by that of ****Arnold**** Drake, amused4ever, and some sources from other websites...**

* * *

Mark Logan was an accomplished medical doctor specializing in biological research, with the dream to "reverse" evolution in the attempt to bring back extinct missing species set in his mind. He started his work on the safari of Africa, hopping on a plane out of America and bringing his wife Marie and their three year old son along. He spent time there studying animals and building an experimental machine that projected radiation of some sort. Little did Dr. Logan know when it was nearly finished the machine would prove to be quite handy.

His dreams of winning Nobel prizes and ensuring a future for his small family were at their climax as he brought to close the unlocking of the secret of evolution. Unfortunately, it was then his son decided to contract the tropical disease Sakutia, becoming critically ill. Dr. Logan's dreams cam crashing down and he rushed to find the cure before his only son died. Sakutia was very rare and very fatal to humans, giving scarce hope to the Logans; Dr. Logan still searched, however, though his son fell closer to death with each passing hour. Finally, a local tribesman spoke of the theory that animals seemed to always survive this strange disease, hardly contracting it as if they were immune. Dr. Logan grasped at this piece of local knowledge, praying with every ounce of his heart for it to be true.

The machine that Dr. Logan had been working on and had used for his research had a name: ES-1403. That whole name was merely composed of initials for different codes and usage of the machine, but it stuck nonetheless. ES-1403 had been designed by Dr. Logan with the help of one of his closest friends in his earlier career days, before he had left for Africa. The plans and blueprints had never been acted upon by either, until Dr. Logan pulled them out once again on the decision of his trip and this time he carried them out. Entering some modifications, Dr. Logan soon had what would be most helpful in many ways.

ES-1403 had been made primarily to isolate the common genetically shared bond between animals and their ancestors. Dr. Logan planned to use it separate ancient but surviving genes from current species, enabling him to trace back these genes in history to familiar ancestors between today's animals. It didn't take long for Dr. Logan to realize he could isolate the gene that caused the immunity towards Sakutia in animals...he just had to find the right animal.

Dr. Logan chose the animal closest to the human race; a monkey, according to the evolution theory. Entering his son's genetic code and the monkey's code into the machine he replaced certain genes with that of the monkey's genes, taking his own son's life dangerously close to death without the disease. His wife turned away from him, afraid for her son's life which her husband was playing so carelessly with. The couple waited after Dr. Logan completed the process, refusing to talk to each other. To the sake of their son's life and the couple's relationship, however, Dr. Logan's idea was successful—their son recovered from the disease within a couple of days.

Dr. Logan was not ever sure what exactly he had done to let his son survive, but he graced it with the power of heaven that his son was meant to live. But despite all his efforts to return his son to a healthy toddler once again, he could not stop the side effects of the radiation process that had been the lifesaver. His son's genetic code would forever be dangerously unstable; one wrong dose of DNA-changing or destroying radiation would once more throw his son's life onto the edge of death. Dr. Logan kept this information to himself, never telling his wife or anyone else. She already had enough to worry about with their son's physical change. Their son's skin had turned completely green, his usually hazel eyes emerald green, and his bright red hair into a deep forest green. No one ever knew what had caused the difference, but were satisfied with the gift of the Logan's son's life once more.

Life continued on in Africa for the Logans many a year after the Sakutia incident, Dr. Logan still working on his research, but spending much more time with his family and the locals. The couple carefully guarded their son from any danger everyday, the local tribe also growing fond of the energetic green boy they came to know over the years. A midwife of the tribe developed an especially close bond with Mrs. Logan, their two sons of the same age playing together almost everyday. The Logans did not know their son was any different, aside from his odd appearance until one day when Mrs. Logan and the midwife, Shiraz, were picking fresh fruit from trees nearby the tribe and the Logan's camp. Their two boys came along, both now at the curious and fun-loving age of six. The two women were avidly conversing with each other after they had been out for about an hour, and didn't notice as they drew closer and closer to a Black Mamba's nest (a Black Mamba is a very deadly snake, in case you didn't know). Mrs. Logan was heading straight towards it.

Shiraz's son was the first to spot the snake, shouting a warning just as Mrs. Logan's foot came within striking distance of the snake. The Logan's son sprinted across the few feet separating him and his mother, desperately trying to save her as the Black Mamba reared back to bite. This was when the powers of the Logan's son first revealed themselves: the Logan's son transformed into a green mongoose right before his mother's and the midwife's eyes, snatching the snake away in one bite and saving his mother's life. The small boy was rushed back to the camp after he returned to his normal shape, and ushered straight to his father. After a long talk between his parents, he was told never to let anyone know about his "talent," as they called it, and relayed the same message to the midwife's family.

One afternoon it all changed drastically, though, throwing life into chaos for the Logan's son. He had turned eight just two days before a huge rainstorm washed out the Logan's camp and most of the village nearby. The family fled the rushing flood waters in a wooden reed boat, huddled together with their few belongings. A swift current caught the boat up, however, thrusting them directly into the path of a monstrous waterfall, swollen with the storm. After much begging from his parents as they barreled to their doom, the Logan's son turned into a green bird and flew up to safety, watching with fear and despair as his only family plummeted down the waterfall and then crashed to a watery grave.

The Logan's son was taken in by the midwife's tribe when the flood waters receded, after he had survived in the jungle for two weeks alone. The midwife and her family took care of him for a year or so, nursing him back to physical and mental health. When he was nine, American social services came to Africa and to the boy back to America to live in a foster home. It had taken them weeks to discover the Logan's death and longer still to find the Logan's son.

The Logan's son was shunted back and forth between courts because of his peculiar condition, as the government called it, and was rarely kept in a foster home for more than a week. The pattern of moving in then packing up a few days later became ordinary to the Logan's son over the next two years. To entertain himself and drive his numerous caretakers insane, he gladly caused mischief and practiced his "talent" until he was adept at turning into a gorilla then to an ant in one fluid motion. He did not tell anyone about his powers, keeping his parents' wish; instead he wrecked havoc that everyone knew was at his fault but couldn't prove so. The young Logan's son developed a bright sense of humor, though it was often at another's expense.

One particular social worker seemed to take the Logan's boy in interest. His name was Steve Dayton, and he was one of the best in his profession. He had been on the Logan's case since the beginning, trying to locate their boy as a last tribute to Marie Logan, whom he had gone to high school and college with and formed sibling bonds. Dayton kept watch over the Logan's son at a distance, an especially helpful though unknown friend to the boy, making sure that the boy was given to the most amicable and benevolent families when he could influence the decision. He never met the boy personally, however, and wished desperately their relationship had stayed that way when they _did_ finally meet. It was a wish with good heart, of course.

When Dayton did meet the Logan's son, it was at request from is current girlfriend, who believed it was in good cause to actually look into becoming a foster-parent. She had started to date the man because she was impressed with his job as a social worker, so Dayton wasn't stubborn on the topic since he knew that helping out a kid wouldn't hurt his reputation with her, either. He even had a thought on what kid he could cast a net out for; Marie's son wasn't getting the life he deserved, he told his girlfriend, and it shouldn't be any trouble to extend a helping hand. Dayton's girlfriend was delighted at the prospect of meeting the boy Dayton had tried so hard to protect.

Both Dayton and his girlfriend were positively excited the morning the drove to the foster-parent headquarters to meet the Logan's son, waiting anxiously at the door for him once they got there. All arrangements had been made and all papers had been signed, the i's dotted and the t's crossed. One thing that Dayton had seemingly failed to mention about the Logan's son, however, became quite apparent as soon as he appeared to be received by his new caretakers. Dayton's girlfriend managed to say one thing before she slumped to the floor startled: "He's _green_?"

Unfortunately, the Logan's boy resulted in the end of Dayton's relationship with his girlfriend, since she was the victim of the boy's numerous pranks. Dayton had formed a pretty strong relationship with the boy, however, so he was left desperate and with the kid he now considered his son. It didn't take long for him to move with the Logan's son to his other apartment in Jump City, far, _far_ away from his ex-girlfriend. There, he enrolled the Logan's boy in the public middle school, but the boy was constantly teased and ridiculed for his skin condition, eventually forcing Dayton to home school him with a tutor. Dayton was afraid to adopt the boy even though he was begged to by the considered adoptee, fearful that the minute he did the boy would be subject to scientific prodding and testing the foster program protected him from. Despite Dayton's efforts of theme park trips and movies as much as possible, the only thing the boy came to like about his life was his foster father and Saturday Night Live.

Escape from his limited life soon came for the Logan's son when a new superhero came to town. Crime rates had been rising drastically in the year Steve Dayton and his foster son had lived in Jump City, so the city welcomed the arrival of two teenage superheroes with open arms. One was known as the Boy Wonder, Robin, breaking free from the famous Batman's teaching at last. The other was the half-machine, half-boy Cyborg, anxious to prove his worth as a new hero. Together, Robin and Cyborg teamed up and decided to start their own crime-fighting team: the Teen Titans.

As the new T-tower rose up to hover over the city skyline, the Logan's son watched it wistfully, never forgetting his powers and dreaming of a life where he would be accepted, even praised! As he watched, he became more and more restless with his life of secrecy, and began to practice perfecting his shape-shifting in the dead of the night, hoping one day he just might join the Teen Titans. Dayton, though, soon discovered his foster son's late-night practices, and forbid him from joining the crime fighting business at all, fearing for his safety. Immensely upset, the Logan's son shut himself in his room.

He decided to run away.

Waiting until Dayton had left for work the next morning, the now eleven-year-old Logan caught a bus to downtown Jump City, determined to prove Dayton's fears wrong by stopping a crime single-handedly. Unfortunately, he was a little_ too_ confident in his powers; Robin and Cyborg found him being locked into a bank vault as a kangaroo at the Jump City Bank. They managed to pull the robbers off him, but ended up being saved by the young Logan when he kicked a gun that had been aiming directly at Robin's back out of one of the robber's hands. The three boys finished off the rest of the criminals together, and Robin convinced the Logan's son to return home—providing that Cyborg and himself would speak to Dayton about joining the Teen Titans.

After a grueling talk between the two heroes and Dayton, with the Logan's son sitting outside the room, Dayton finally agreed to let the boy join. He realized that he couldn't control his foster son's life; _and_ he didn't want him to pull another stunt like running away, which had left Dayton worried sick and calling the police. But he _did_ make them all promise that his foster son would return home to the small inner-city apartment every year on his birthday to spend a couple days with Dayton.

And so packing his bags and leaving his old life, the Logan's son joined the Teen Titans to be known to the world as Beast Boy.


	2. Part 1: Saturday Crime Or More?

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

**FULL SUMMARY OF "LIFE WITH NO GREEN"**

The Summary: Beast Boy is as normal as any fourteen-year-old with green skin and superpowers can be; and he's very happy with his as-normal-as-it-can-be life. He has some of the best friends he could have, his _own_ room that's finally big enough for him, TONS of video games and root beer, and not to mention the possibility of a pretty gir—okay, never mind, just TONS of root beer. Oh, and plenty of tofu to top that off. His birthday is also on the way, and he can't wait to see his foster father again after like, what, two years?

Unfortunately, there are plans coming towards Beast Boy that aren't under his 'I WANT' list. In the middle of a seemingly average battle with an average criminal, Beast Boy's life is turned upside down . . . more specifically, his life is turned very _normal_. As in _no green_ normal. As in _bad_ normal, especially when he is ripped away from everything he has ever loved. But dealing with his loss is not the only thing Beast Boy has to deal with. Someone is on his tail, and wants that tail very badly; but why?

_Rated for some language and violence in later chapters._

The Characters:

**The Team**- Robin, Cyborg, Starfire, Raven & Beast Boy

**The High School Buddies**- Kassie Malvern, Michael Lzuck, The Badboiz (garage band), & Garfield (Gar) Logan

**The (Desperately Trying) Foster Parent**- Steve Dayton

**The Bad Guyz/Girlz**- u honestly think i'm gonna tell you?

**Anonymous Characters**- whoever wasn't jus named that's in this story

**NOW BUCKLE UP, CUZ HERE WE GO!**

**_(CAUTION: This fanfic contains some behavior that is very depressing and the story can be very anguishy…I may seem nice and hyper now, but this fanfic IS NOT anywhere nice to Beast Boy, unfortunately…) _**

* * *

_Today is a good day. Oh yes, a very good day._

_Two girls in shapely tanks and jean shorts cooed over the green teenage boy cruising along in his bright red Mustang, two more girls sitting next to it and petting his messy hair. A gleaming white Moped, very much like the one used to defeat NewFu, tied into the truck. The boy looked thoroughly pleased with himself, a playful grin on his lips and slick sunglasses on his face. His Hawaiian-flowered shirt flapped against his sides as he nodded his head in time to the thumping of a distant stereo. Today is a good day._

_One of the girls, who all strangely had blonde hair and blue eyes, opened her mouth to speak. She placed a finger under the boy's chin and whispered in his ear—_

_"Beep."_

_Huh? The girl looked at him again intensely, and the other three turned as well. They all opened their mouths at the same time._

_"Beep."_

_They edged closer to the boy, their eyes suddenly turning a malicious yellow, and their hair stood straight out from their head. The boy gulped._

"Beep."

_They grew closer . . ._

"BEEP."

_Now they reared up and brought their arms down to choke the life out of the boy, their hands cold and clammy . . ._

"BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEEPBEEPBEEPBEEP!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Beast Boy jerked awoke with a scream as a last and exaggerated "_BEEP_," sounded from the Teen Titan Communicator laying half covered in dirty bed sheets lying on the floor. He barely noted the flashing red light illuminating his room, instead staring at the communicator sleepily for a second before his exhausted brain pieced together that the communicator only beeped like that when another Teen Titan was trying to communicate with him. That's what communicators are _for_.

Beast boy suddenly jumped out of bed and leaped for the communicator, clutching it in his hands as he flipped it open. On the screen appeared a very frustrated-looking Robin, buildings flashing by in the back ground.

"_Beast Boy!_ Get your butt down here!" he yelled over a faint explosion. Beast Boy cringed and yawned, "Right," while he looked at the location Robin was at: downtown. Beast Boy ran out of his room and jumped down the stairs, turning into a bird just in time to swoop through the automatic door and glide down the hallway until he was outside. He had overslept _again_. Beast Boy groaned inwardly as he thought about the lecture he was going to get from Robin, _again_. He made a mental note to start setting his alarm and setting it under his pillow. Not like that would help much, though, if he was able to sleep through the loud warning buzzard that went off every time the Teen Titans were needed in the city.

By the time Beast Boy arrived at the crime scene, a crestfallen and handcuffed heavyset man in his mid-thirties was being lead by the police to a car while an unconscious masked guy was being dragged to another. A nearby lamppost was shattered over the sidewalk, but besides that nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Robin and the rest of the Titans were standing by one of the policemen, Robin's mouth moving as he talked with the policeman. Cyborg was warily watching the crooks being lead away, Raven was busy staring into space and Starfire was scanning the sky. _Probably looking for me_, Beast Boy meditated. _And__ she just found me_. Starfire waved enthusiastically as she spotted the green bird of prey soaring towards them. Cyborg and Raven peered upward, Robin following suit as the policeman walked away. His face hardened. _Great, now I get DOS lectures . . . Time to face the music._

He dived down toward his waiting friends with a screech, turning back into his normal green form just in time to flip down to the ground. Starfire immediately rushed forward, grabbing Beast Boy in a headlock (most likely meant to be a hug).

"Oh, yes, our friend is fine, friends! Are you not, Beast Boy?"

"I will be if you don't choke me to unfineness," Beast Boy gasped as she hugged him even more tightly than before. Robin saw the chance to attack him while he was pinned.

"You're lucky we were able to stop those guys, you know," Robin stated, circling around to where Beast Boy could see him properly. He crossed his arms. "It could have been a lot worse than just two jerks taking a party dare."

Beast Boy finally pulled himself free of Starfire's arms and stumbled slightly as he righted himself. "I know, I know—"

"No, I don't think you _do_ know," Robin said, throwing up his arms. "That has been the _sixth time_ this month, Beast Boy!"

"I can explain—"

"Can't wait for this excuse," Cyborg breathed out of the side of his mouth. Beast Boy glared at him.

"Really? What kept you this time, mind sharing?" Robin asked flatly.

"Beeping girls," Beast Boy muttered right as he realized that wasn't really an acceptable explanation. "But I—"

"_What?_" Cyborg and Robin exclaimed at the same time. Starfire giggled loudly, and Raven rolled her eyes.

"I promise it won't happen again," Beast Boy blurted. He wasn't as keen to explain now. "I swear."

Robin sighed exasperatedly. "And that's the sixth time this month you've said that." Beast Boy opened his mouth to protest, but Robin cut him off. "Let's just head home." With that, Robin turned on his heel as his cape whipped behind him, Starfire following closely. Raven glided slowly after, taking her time as she always did. Cyborg and Beast Boy started walking off together, striking up an argument about whose turn it was to play the video game they were currently interested in when they got back to the tower.

It was about ten or eleven in the morning on a beautiful early spring Saturday morning, an odd time to try to break in somewhere. But hey, 'stupid criminals' described the ones who just got caught, right? The city was beginning to wake, early shoppers already cruising around the shops that lined the streets, restaurants swinging their doors wide open for brunch specialties. More and more cars were pulling into the parking lot of a mall that the teenage group passed, traffic lights preparing for the Saturday late morning traffic jams. The sky was cloudless and a forget-me-not blue, a cool breeze promising another favorable spring day. Robin would probably make them run the outside obstacle course once or twice, but then the team would be free for the rest of the day. Police rarely needed their help with the occasional shoplifter at malls and what other criminals who would waste this carefree day on crime . . . well, besides the ones heading to the jail now? This would be the perfect Saturday, Beast Boy determined.

Beast Boy had no idea how wrong he could be.

* * *

"It's the Cyona, man."

"The Frytsal!"

"I'm telling you, it's _definitely _the Cyona."

"_Dude_, how stupid do you think I am? It's the Frystal!"

"Whatever; you're wrong."

"And you think you're not?"

Robin tried to ignore Cyborg and Beast Boy's bickering about the names of video game moves as best as he could, but it was pretty hard to do since they were screaming right behind him. He glanced at Starfire, who was walking next to him and smiled. She had a serene expression on her face, which was pointing towards the sky with her bright green eyes closed. As if sensing he was watching her, she opened one eye and peered back at him. She grinned and faced him. "It is for days like this I enjoy your planet; other than your people," she commented joyfully, her face glowing. Robin chuckled and glanced around to make sure everyone was behind him and Starfire. Beast Boy and Cyborg were still arguing, but the day was actually peaceful. Robin had always liked the spring season, bringing new beginnings and fresh colors everywhere.

It wasn't as if he couldn't enjoy it, either. Most of his projects on the villains the Teen Titans had been occupied with had halted. Robin's last encounter with the psychologically-triggered Slade had long since passed and his boxes full of that technology had been safely packed away. Aqualad, Bumblebee and the Titans East were still getting acquainted with the city they were posted at, finally out of Brother Blood's grasp for good, and had no alarming threats on any new criminals in the area. The normal annoyances such as Cinderblock and Mad Mod were locked up in the jailhouse, and with no promising escape events planned. All in all, it appeared as if the Titans would get a much deserved break in the upcoming week.

* * *

At the top of an apartment complex stories above the Teen Titans a lone figure watched the group walk leisurely back to their headquarters, waiting for the opportune moment to attack. It was hidden in the shadows, dressed in a black skin-tight suit with numerous gadgets attached to its waist on a utility belt and a black jetpack tied to its back. A black helmet, which suspiciously looked as if it belonged to a four-wheeler, disguised the face and kept all unwanted eyes from memorizing fatal details. It was impossible to tell whether or not the person was female or male, though it was lean enough to be considered too supple for a man but too bulky and muscular for a woman. To many it would appear to be some sort of spy; but that was not all it could do.

The built-in binoculars in the helmet showed every detail of the group of super heroes, from the screws in the half-machine one to the hairs on the arm of the Boy Wonder…those details were not of what the figure was particularly fond of, however. Instead it adjusted the binoculars with the touch of a finger so the street could be seen, as well as the streets blocks away. The figure quickly scanned the areas for police or security guards, though they would only be of minor irritation to the figure's mission. It fingered the metal ball clasped to its waist; the ball was only three inches in diameter, yet the figure knew it could do plenty of damage to the right people within a 300-mile circumference. The ball was harmless to its carrier, but if it managed to malfunction or break in its time of need, the figure knew the dreaded consequences that were available.

So it watched the Titans carefully, spotting its target immediately. The figure decided to wait until the team was at the busy intersection directly ahead. The cars and early-morning cursing at insane drivers would provide enough distraction so the figure could get its target where it wanted. And then...the figure grinned harshly under its helmet, jumping from its perch to the next building inhumanly fast and lithe.

…And then its master would be pleased.

* * *

"Dude! Why don't you just admit that you're _wrong_?" said Beast Boy, rolling his eyes. He hated being wrong, and Cyborg had just proved he was.

"Cuz I'm not, and you know it!" Cyborg retorted, his face smug. Beast Boy's forehead throbbed in frustration.

"Just shut up, both of you," Raven huffed, tired of the argument that had been carried on rather pointlessly for the last ten minutes. She was still hardly awake _and_ still grumpy.

"Yeah, do you guys mind being quiet while we cross this street? We probably wouldn't hear an eighteen-wheeler headed straight towards us at the rate you're carrying on," Robin reprimanded as Starfire laughed at his joke. A pretty bad one, too, thought Beast Boy. He and Cyborg did shut up though, more from the glowering glint in Raven's eye than anything. Robin pushed the little button on the lampposts that were always there at crosswalks, starting up a conversation with Starfire while they waited for the 'DON'T WALK' to change to 'WALK'. Beast Boy gazed at them moodily for a second, then switched his gaze over to the downtown bakery across the street. His stomach rumbled right as he realized he hadn't had anything for breakfast. He turned to hopefully suggest a stop at the store when suddenly the hair on the back of his neck stood up on its ends, a sixth sense of caution jolting Beast Boy. He peered upward at the shadows above the store, his eyes searching…_maybe I _should_ start going to bed earlier_, thought Beast Boy as he shrugged and turned back to his previous thoughts. Raven, however, had noticed him stiffen and now looked at him with a hint of concern in her eyes. The group started across the street as the sign finally changed on the other side, and she sidled up next to him in all the movement.

"Hey. Everything okay?"

Beast Boy jumped at the sound of Raven's voice in his ear, turning to face her. He stared at her for a minute, and then opened his mouth to respond and tell her it was nothing.

Unfortunately, he never got the chance.

TSSSSSIWTT! Beast Boy heard the shot as he instinctively threw himself at Raven, bringing them both to the ground. The black pavement knocked the breath out of them, and whatever had been shot flew safely over their heads as they came to a stop…or at least as _Raven_ came to a stop. Beast Boy silently cursed as he kept tumbling, his momentum carrying him directly into the path of a truck. He barely had enough time to turn into an eagle and swoop out of the way as the truck came to a screeching halt.

"What the h—!" Cyborg exclaimed as Beast Boy landed and came to a battle crouch, Raven rising to her feet with black energy cackling around her hands. He cut off as he saw the shadow detach itself from the building behind the group and swing—straight towards Robin's head. "ROBIN! _Duck!_"

Robin did duck, bringing up his foot in the process so it jammed into the figure's chest, causing it to stumble over Robin. But the figure was just as deft; it wrapped its arms around Robin's leg and swung him around as it fell. Straight into the face of Cyborg.

Raven had their backs as usual, though, and without missing a beat a fire hydrant was smashing into the figure's face, throwing it off balance and sending Robin flying through the air past Cyborg at a safe distance. Starfire caught Robin and dropped him on the ground as Cyborg, Raven and Beast Boy lined up, all thought of the tower and breakfast in the past. It had all taken a moment. No one had time to give congrats on excellent maneuvering, however, seeing as the figure had a gun out and was firing before Robin could shout his telltale, 'Titans! Go!'

Robin was dodging bullets and running at once towards the figure, finally getting a good look at it. It was swathed in black, a helmet covering its face with no symbols or clues as to who had sent the figure visible. Robin's brief look was over within seconds, however, as a gas bomb erupted in front of the figure. Robin staggered, breaking into a coughing fit, as the others stopped short behind him. Cyborg helped him up, Raven and Starfire watching the smoke warily as encircled the group on all sides. Beast Boy shifted back from a gorilla, scratching his head. "Dude! Where'd he go?" he said.

A black staff whipped out of the smoke to whack Cyborg on the head and Robin across the back in one swift motion, as if to answer Beast Boy's question. It disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared, and came through the smoke on the opposite side seconds later to fling Raven's legs out from underneath her and hit Starfire in the stomach, causing her to double over and fall to the ground. Beast Boy quickly shifted into a bat and flew into the smoke, locating the figure by echolocation. It circled the group, careful to keep to the thicker smoke, watching them slowly climb to their feet. It all of a sudden started searching the smoke around it, and Beast Boy knew it had realized he was missing. Without a second thought, he flew into the figure's helmet, screeching as loud as he could to alert the others. The figure panicked for only a minute before it calmly brought its stick up to smack Beast Boy's fragile bones and stuck something into Beast Boy's side as he fell to the ground. The figure's moment of panic cost it, though, as it noticed it was standing in the middle of the Titans with the smoke screen slowly fading. Cyborg charged with fists flying at the figure before it could react, bringing it crashing to the ground as Raven hurriedly removed Beast Boy's limp form from the fray with her magic. Robin and Cyborg pounded the black figure over and over on the ground, all three just flashes of color as they fought furiously, Starfire hurling light discs at the figure as well. Raven patted the little bat's head gently as the fighting went on, trying to revive Beast Boy. The bat suddenly gasped and swiftly turned into Beast Boy, who clutched his side as he sat up hastily. "Raven," Beast Boy panted, "Stun darts! He has—"

Then suddenly Robin was lying motionless on the ground and Cyborg was hurtling at Starfire, the figure running off the street into an alleyway. "Robin!" Starfire wailed as she somehow managed to set Cyborg down safely. They both ran to the still form, and Raven glanced at Beast Boy as he used her shoulder to push himself to his feet, immediately changing into a green cheetah and running off in the direction that the figure had went. Raven watched Robin struggle to sit up, then jetted away after Beast Boy, determining that Robin would be okay.

* * *

The figure ran through the shadows of the back alleyways, its breathing labored but its purpose almost fulfilled. It had seen the green one follow, and now tried desperately to keep ahead of him. All he needed was a little hollow to wait in or a depression to hide in, so the green one could run into the trap, unsuspecting…

There! The figure cowed silently at its brilliance as it raced up a fire escape to wait inside a caved door. It fumbled with its belt, releasing the small metal ball and pushing it into the palm of its hand. A street hummed noisily with traffic to its left, but it would have to risk collapsing part of the street. The people should not be harmed much. No, this ball was made specifically for one individual alone…the one who chased it now. The figure took a deep breath and promised itself it would not fail its master.

Then the green one bounded out of the shadows, in the form of a large cat now, and came to a confused stop. He sniffed the air, no doubt searching for the figure's scent. A bloodhound gracefully took the place of the large cat, and the figure knew the time had come. It stood promptly, simultaneously as the dark one rounded the corner and came out of the shadows. It stared at her for a second, then carried on its action unfalteringly.

Raven saw the figure rise, and her eyes widened as she saw it toss the metal ball over the side of the fire escape, then hunker down protectively in the doorway. She watched the ball drop over Beast Boy's head impossibly slow, and opened her mouth to shout a warning, still too stunned to do anything else.

"Beast Boy!"

Beast Boy looked up at the sound of his name to see a small metal ball falling from above. He shifted back to his human form and dived out of the way, covering his face with his hands as the ball thudded to the ground. He stayed like that for a minute, waiting for the worst to happen. When it did not, he peeked through his arms to see the ball rolling slowly towards him, and Raven darting to the fire escape after a slight pause. He sighed and started to get up, wondering why Raven was flying to the escape of all places.

That's when the ball exploded.


	3. Part 1: When it Hits You

**Author's Note: **WOOHOO! i got four reviewers, that's SO AWESUM! sniff i luv u guys…moving on, at the beginning of each chapter i give a little personal thank you to the new reviews, so i'll do that in a minute. for those of you wondering, i'm doin this fanfic cuz so many people brush Beast Boy off as either a total idiot lovesick for Terra, or a complete hothead who's only _still_ interested in Terra…not that i don't like some of those stories, but Beast Boy is my absolute favorite character on Teen Titans, and i'm getting tired of him being used mostly as a flat character. so i decided to write a fanfic about our favorite green changeling, with the purpose to give his character more depth and emotion. i got the idea for this fanfic after watching the episode "The Beast Within," and immediately luved it and decided to get my idea published on yes, this is a bbrae fanfic, so srry if you don't like them being together—but this story still has A LOT of Beast Boy anguish and some humor, so don't leave just yet!

**Pluiesang: **hehe, thanx for the reviews, i'm still waitin for u to UPDATE. anywayz, tell me wat sections you feel are rushed and why they're rushed and i'll go unrush them a bit.

**TDG3RD: **dude, thanx, I LUV U! hope you read this fanfic again…

**Dragoon-bane:** hey man, thanx and hope u keep reading! Its gets better. smiles mischievously

**Smileyfacedudett:** yepyep, me _kno_ its awesum!

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

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Raven was thrown at least twenty feet from the escape from the explosion, debris from the now-demolished dumpster hitting her face and arms. The wall came up at her, a huge wave of smoke pushing her towards it. Raven yelled something between a strangled wail and raging battle cry before she shot up into the sky and sped a good hundred feet above the alleyway. She watched in horror as the smoke chased people down the street and heard a great grinding noise that jarred her to her bones, and gasped as she saw the street begin to collapse. A flicker of motion caught her eye, a black figure dashing into the smoke back through the alley. Screams echoed throughout the air, and Raven sped towards the people running and scrambling to get off the collapsing concrete and gravel. She scooped up as many people as she could in her magic, dumping them a safe distance away. Soon smoke buried the street and she was working by only sound, listening for screams or cries too close for comfort. Raven paid no heed to her stinging eyes or the tears leaking down her face. Only one thought raced through her head.

_Oh God._

It didn't take long for the others to catch up to her, simply running or flying as fast as they could towards the rising column of smoke. When they rounded the corner of the block, all three stopped in shock, watching Raven's form in the sky lift objects and people to safety with giant spheres and shovels of magic. The collapsing street had groaned to a stop, but was very unstable. A huge chasm of black yawned into the middle of the street, leading deep into the sewer network below the city. What had been an alley way moments before was now littered with rubbish, though the two buildings on either side were miraculously still standing, their outlines barely visible.

After a moment of silence, Robin, who had halted beside Cyborg, straightened and looked back towards Cyborg and Starfire, both on the ground and waiting for his orders on what to do. He glanced back at Raven to see how she was faring and saw her gliding down to them.

"What happened?" Robin asked as soon as Raven landed beside the other three, his voice echoing his amazement at the destruction that had happened while he was absent for only a few minutes. He immediately noted the puzzled and helpless expression on her face and grew more concerned. More and more people were starting to crowd on the sidewalks on the other side of the street, realizing there wasn't immediate danger anymore.

"Rae…where's B.B.?" Cyborg spoke, noticing the changeling was missing.

Raven stared at him for a moment, as if trying to comprehend the question. She looked at the team desperately. "He…it…" she said, obviously working to keep her emotions in check. "I—that _thing_ had a bomb," she spat, a surge of anger flaring up inside her. A fire hydrant opposite of the team flew upwards in a spurt of black magic, but no one paid it any notice.

"_Damn_," Robin swore, swiftly turning away as he absorbed what Raven had just stated. Cyborg continued staring at the wreckage, and Starfire gasped in dismay.

"But—our friend? Is he not 'okay'?" Starfire asked carefully, as if she didn't understand what she was being told.

Raven looked at her, her face blank and feelings monotone again. "I really don't know." The team was silent for a second. Sirens could be heard coming up from the distance. Raven then took a deep breath, a hard look on her face. She gestured towards the alley. "But I know where _he_ went."

No one needed to ask who 'he' was. Robin brought his head up, turning towards the group again. He decided their moment of grief was over…but not that they needed one, as far as he was concerned. He wouldn't accept anything until he had concrete proof. It was his policy.

"Cyborg, you and Starfire go down where the alley way, help anyone that may be down there, and look for where Beast Boy is. Raven, come with me; we're going after whoever did this," Robin ordered, his voice stone. Cyborg nodded, and Starfire gave a small yes. Raven watched him, waiting to go. He darted off in the direction of the smoke, commanding one last thing that he hadn't been able to shout before.

"Titans, _go_!"

* * *

When the small sphere blew up, it had been level with Beast Boy's face. He had had one instant to pray for a miracle, everything moving agonizingly slow, before the whole world exploded. He was thrown backwards like Raven by the blast, but he didn't have anywhere to fly to except straight into the brick wall behind him. His body hit full force, the wall like a sledgehammer driving into his back and the strength of the explosion knocking him out for at least a few seconds. When his eyes snapped back open, the world was swimming in his vision, he was lying next to the wall covered in brick dust and trash from the dumpster, and he realized with dread that the whole alley was beginning to collapse. Though his mind screamed at him to get up and morph into a bird so he could fly away, his body would not respond, as if someone had loaded him up on numbing tranquilizers. He vaguely remembered some random piece of information about shock of the body, and guessed that was what he was experiencing. He stared with frozen eyes at the huge whole opening up before him helplessly, feeling his body begin to role towards it.

Suddenly a cold wave swept through his body, traveling from his face through his neck to his back in moments, leaving his eyes stinging and his mouth full of a brackish taste. Beast Boy snapped back to life again, just as another wave came upon him, and began groping desperately at any kind of debris around him, trying to pull himself up. Stars erupted in his vision, his stomach convulsing without warning so he puked up what little substance that was in it. The alley was rumbling and the cement crumbled underneath Beast Boy, giving way to his weight. He managed to wonder why there weren't any orange fireballs or searing heat before more waves of coldness and nausea swept over him and he tumbled head first into darkness.

It seemed to take forever to hit the bottom of the now massive pit, Beast Boy drifting in a weird, half-dazed state. He clutched his abdomen the whole time, sickness wracking his body with the waves still coming on. When he finally hit the sewer water, its ice-cold jolt brought him back to himself. He sank far into the murky water, then abruptly surged to the surface with a new strength, dodging the chunks of brick and cement that had fallen with him while he fought against the current and gasped for air. Despite his efforts, he was far down the black tunnel when he pulled himself onto the rough outcrop beside the miniature river, choking on dirty water and dust.

"Aarghh," Beast Boy groaned as he rolled onto his back, his face heated and flushed. His eyelids flickered as he struggled to stay awake, the brackish taste still on his tongue. He moved onto his side, meekly coughing up more water as he closed his eyes to slow the swaying motion in his head. The rushing of the sewer water actually sounded comforting if he could forget the fact it was _sewer_ water.

_What had just happened?_

His eyes snapped open as Beast Boy realized that the whole explosion hadn't been right; if that sphere had been a bomb, it must have broken or whatever—nothing had happened like it did in the movies with spitting fire and mushroom clouds. And he wasn't hurt, at least from what he could tell. But then again…Beast Boy furrowed his brow, but immediately stopped when a deep, grinding pain began at the back of his head and between his eyes, as if someone was rubbing grit against his skull. Something had changed inside him, leaving him with the feeling he had ripped in two and turned inside out. He groaned again, not able to put his finger on the change even though he knew it was there.

A rumble sounded overhead and bits of dust fell onto Beast Boy's head, reminding him that he wasn't in the most secure of places. With another surge of energy, Beast Boy pushed himself up, ignoring the high-pitched ring that had just started in his ears. He put his hand against the slick, slime-covered tunnel wall, leaning into the wall as he absorbed the effects of lifting himself up. He noticed he had lost his glove. Everything was dark, light from street level illuminating shadows farther up ahead where the alley had once been. The water ran by, at least four feet deep, undisturbed by the creaking and faint wails that could be heard. Beast Boy watched a cup and next a piece of metal float by stupidly, still dazed from his fall. He unexpectedly broke out in a coughing fit, his sides heaving as he tried to unclog his throat.

It took a minute for the coughing to calm down, Beast Boy's eyes watering furiously when it did. Squinting his eyes, he stared hard, searching for a way to get out before the whole sewer collapsed. It seemed as if heaven had finally favored him when he saw the prongs and pothole leading up to the street a little ways down the tunnel, opposite of the way he had come. Looking at it for a couple more seconds to make sure it was there, he then started to walk haltingly towards it, afraid if he moved to fast he'd faint.

Every step felt as if he was walking closer to his death, so convinced Beast Boy was that the sewer would collapse any minute because of the ruckus the walls were beginning to make. But soon enough Beast Boy was at the ladder of prongs leading up to the streets, white light from the late morning sun shining on his face and causing him to squint his eyes. The wall suddenly gave a wretched moan, Beast Boy reacting instantly and tried to shift into a bird once more. He gasped when the headache at the back of his head stabbed into his head violently, nothing different or even feathery about his appearance. Puzzled, Beast Boy glared up at the light, but quickly shoved all his troubled thoughts aside when rock started crumbling, falling from the ceiling and walls. Whispering a curse, Beast Boy forced himself to climb up the prongs, knowing he was engaged in a race against the rate he climbed and the rate the sewer decided to fall—so he needed to climb _fast_.

He scrambled up the ladder, the once distant screams and shouts from the street now very close. As Beast Boy grew nearer to the pothole, he noticed it seemed to have been yanked from its place in the paved street. Sure enough, when he reached the top, he glanced at the side of the hole and saw the circular metal door with cement in tattered pieces still attached to it, lying around it. Starfire or Cyborg had been here, their inhuman strength the only thing that could've ripped it away, with Robin having no superpowers and Raven's handiwork usually disappearing to about twenty feet away.

Beast Boy looked up into the commotion of the street, his eyes already adjusting to the bright light of the day. People ran in the direction he was facing, shouting the names of their friends and family, and clearly trying to escape whatever they had deemed dangerous. One quick look at the smoke streaked sky told Beast Boy that the alley had _definitely_ blown up; he was now too far away to see any extensive damage, though. Instead cars were abandoned on the side of the road, some skidded to a stop or run into the bumpers of others ahead. Letting another deep cough roll from his chest, Beast Boy struggled to climb wholly out of the sewer.

Before he knew it he was being lifted easily out of the pothole, a strong and reassuring grip on his arm as whoever had helped him led him to the sidewalk. Surprised and relieved that someone had stopped panicking enough to help him, Beast Boy turned to say thanks and met the concerned-looking face of a guy around his age. He was a little taller than Beast Boy, with dusty brown hair and dark-brown eyes, his frame slight and athletic. He wore the usual jeans and T-shirt, giving Beast Boy the feeling the explosion had interrupted his Saturday morning at the mall with his friends.

"Hey, man, you okay? I'm not even gonna _think_ about asking you what you were doin' in the sewer, but you look pretty beat up," the guy asked, genuine worry echoing in his voice. Beast Boy nodded, unable to speak. The guy raised a slim eyebrow, shook his head and continued, "Whatever, man. Just don't go _that_ way." He gestured at the direction of the alleyway, and then was gone.

Beast Boy stared at the guy's receding back for a minute longer, unsure of where to go or what to do next. He didn't know where the rest of the team was, and didn't even know exactly where he was for a second. His Titan communicator had unsurprisingly vanished in all the excitement, so he had no way of communicating with anyone either. He could head back to the tower, but what if someone needed his help? He didn't want _three_ freaking lectures from Robin…

As if in answer to his uncertainties, he overheard the conversation between two voices, one very polite and inquiring, the other very agitated and fearful…Starfire's voice sounded so sweet to his ears it wasn't even _funny_.

"Please, sir, are you sure you have not seen my friend? He is of short length and height, very humorous and—"

"Lady, I haven't seen your little friend, so just let me by. This whole _street_ could fall in any minute—"

"—he is of green color and can change into the animals of your planet—"

"Let me get by, you freak!"

He scanned the crowd, looking for her purple suit and red hair, anxious to know where the others were and what had happened in the alley. His aching head and exhaustion were immediately forgotten when he spotted her over next to a lamppost, interrogating a man in his early twenties who seemed anxious to get away. Beast Boy started making his way through the people running in the opposite direction, starting to wave his arms and shout her name.

"Starfire! Starfire! Over here!"

At the sound of his voice Starfire turned away from the man, who anxiously slipped away in her distraction. Her green eyes searched the crowd eagerly, looking for Beast Boy's familiar splotch of green hair against the tide of redheads, blondes, brunettes, pinks, blacks, purples, and blues. Puzzlement reflected in her eyes after only a second of searching, however, as if she was unable to see him. Beast Boy solved the problem by shouting louder and waving his hands wider. It didn't take long for Starfire to spot him after he exerted his efforts, and she glided towards him though the puzzled and anxious expression was still in place on her face.

Beast Boy immediately sighed with relief as she came to a stop in front of him, and began to speak only to be interrupted by her. "God, Starfire, I'm—"

"Excuse me, citizen of Earth, but have you seen my friend? He is of short length and height, very humorous and he is of green color and—"

Beast Boy stared at Starfire as she rambled on, a slow apprehension beginning to rise from the pit of his stomach. Why didn't she recognize him? He raised his hand so she stopped speaking and waved. "Uh, Star? Yeah, hi."

"Yes?" Her voice echoed confusion in every part. "You have something to say?"

Beast Boy continued to stare at her, unbelieving. "_Star_, it's _me_!"

* * *

Raven searched the darkened shadows of the nicks and crannies in the city from the air, anxious to find the idiot who had ruined her perfectly fine Saturday morning with an unnecessary explosion that might've killed one of her friends, hurt plenty of innocent people and keep the cops busy to where law enforcement would have to rely on _them_, the _Titans_, to clean up crime for the rest of the day when they all could've relaxed. Reading, playing video games, shopping, exercising—just doing whatever, like normal teenagers for a bit. But no, that—that _worm_ had decided to ruin it all, and _yes,_ in case geniuses are scarce in today's world…

Yes, Raven was _pissed_.

Robin rode below her on the R-cycle, scourging the streets for the criminal at city-level, his tracking gadgets being put to use. Raven heard his voice in her head through the telepathic connection she had just formed between them so they could keep their Titan communicators open for any word of Beast Boy. _Raven, I think I have a lock on him; he's moving fast, seventy miles an hour on __Berwick Street__, two blocks to your left. He's making multiple turns and swerves, to I think he's on a moving vehicle._ She looked over as directed, catching sight of a hurtling black four-wheeler as she heightened her sight with her powers. _Got him_, she told Robin, swooping almost greedily in that direction. _Meet me there._

_Don't do anything stupid,_ Robin warned her as he turned onto a back street. Raven nodded, knowing there was no way he could see her nod as she did it. She didn't care.

The black figure was just as before, besides the fact that he was aloft on a vicious-looking black four-wheeler, screaming down the street way past the speed limit. He obviously wasn't worried, his body relaxed. Raven imagined with disgust his face was probably painted with triumph at his eloquent get-away. _Well_, she thought savagely, _I can fix that problem quite nicely_. Two seconds later mailboxes and lampposts were flying at the figure and he four-wheeler, veiled in black energy. The four-wheeler swerved off of the street and onto a sidewalk to avoid a particularly well-aimed mailbox, crashing into a building's stairway. Pedestrians screamed and dived out of the way right before the vehicle hit, brick chunks and metal thrown from the wreckage. Raven came to stop above the four-wheeler and put her hands out in front of her. Concentrating, she began quietly then got louder and louder. "Azrath, _Mentrion_, _CENTHOS_!"

She drew back her hands and pulled a parked car with her magic to where it hovered directly above the black-clad figure and his four-wheeler, then brought it crashing down, caring very little whether the four-wheeler or the rider survived. To Raven's disappointment, however, the criminal bounded out of the wreckage, running away from the smoking rubble apparently unharmed. A fierce fire leapt up in Raven's eyes, and she drew her hands back once again, ready to smash her rival underneath the weight of a whole building if necessary. Robin, however, beat her to it, pulling out of the ally in front of the running figure on his R-cycle, stopping the figure in its tracks. _Raven_, he shouted in her head, forgetting she could her him fine, _close a sphere around him!_ The slight surprise of Robin's sudden appearance and the pause in action allowed Raven the little time she needed to get her temper under control, the fire dying out in her eyes as she listened to Robin's order and trapped the figure in an unbreakable sphere of black energy. Robin nodded to her as the figure started beating its fists on the energy surrounded it, and took out his Titan communicator to call the police.

Without warning Raven felt a sharp pain in the small of her back, a wrenching fire traveling up her spine. She let loose a cry of pain and dismay as her back curved into an arch and she watched helplessly as her powers jumped out of control, exploding from her hands. Her sphere prison ripped open, letting the imprisoned figure back into the day, and it didn't waste a minute of time gained from whatever had disturbed Raven's powers. Sprinting at full speed, the figure leaped into the air and two metal black wings shot out of the jetpack on its back, the rockets flaring to life. Robin dived at the figure in vain before it sped away, too quickly for anyone to do anything. Raven was now on the ground, slumped over and moaning softly. The small dart that had caused so much agony to her laid a few feet to her left, dislodged by the struggles and efforts of Raven's powers. Seeing that no one could do anything about the escapee, Robin ran over to Raven and gently helped her to her feet.

"Rae, you fine?" Robin asked softly, supporting her weight as they rose slowly.

"Yeah…" she whispered, still stunned from the pain of the dart but coming back to herself. She cleared her throat and asked her familiar monotone voice, "He got away, didn't he?"

Robin nodded his head and made sure Raven could stand before he went over to the dart and picked it up. He peered at it for a minute, then swiftly pulled out a miniature plastic bag, dropped the dart in, sealed the bag and put the whole arrangement away. He looked up at Raven, who was observing his actions silently. "Yes," he said, enforcing his nod. He glared at the direction the jetpack-assisted figure had taken off in. "And he wasn't working alone."

BEEPBEEP. Raven and Robin both jerked their heads around to stare at each other at the sound of the Titan communicator's call. Then Robin was ripping out his communicator and Raven was promptly gliding over to gaze around Robin's shoulder at the small screen. Robin flipped open the communicator, both Robin and Raven holding their breaths. After a slight pause, the screen flickered and Cyborg's face appeared, looking extremely perplexed and anxious. Robin and Raven looked at each other again, fearing the worst.

"Cyborg," Robin said, his voice as firm as always.

"Did you catch him?" Cyborg immediately inquired, leaning in closer to the screen so his face loomed in their vision.

"No, he got away," Robin answered shortly. "We couldn't stop him; he had a jetpack and an accomplice."

Cyborg's eyebrows rose at the last comment. "That's something we'll have to talk about."

Robin nodded slowly, then finally asked the question everyone was waiting for: "Well? Where's Star?" His voice grew softer. "Did you…find him?"

All three knew precisely who Robin meant when he said "he". Cyborg opened his mouth, then closed it and nodded his head in answer. Raven felt a huge wave of relief sweep over her, and Robin's stature relaxed. "Actually, he kind of found Star. She's behind me with him now. We're sitting outside a shop about a street down from the alley. The communicator will show you our exact location."

"Got it," Robin answered. He prepared to snap the communicator shut. "We'll be right there."

"Wait!" Robin and Raven stared at Cyborg, waiting. His eyes darted to the side, as if he was double-checking something. "There's something you guys should know…"

"Is he hurt?" It was the first time Raven had spoken, so Cyborg and Robin glanced at her with a little surprise.

"Ah…no. But…" Raven and Robin waiting again, now knowing something was up. Cyborg noticed there impatient expressions. "Okay, look, he's not in _really_ bad shape, so don't freak out, but we should get him to the tower as soon as we can. I need to set him up in the infirmary."

"Why?" Robin asked quickly. Raven's slow fear started to return. She felt her stomach turn once.

"I…just, you need to see it for yourselves," Cyborg blurted hastily, stepping back so the two on the other end could see behind Star and Beast Boy behind him. Raven stepped back as well, but in shock, while Robin's mouth dropped open.

Cyborg stood next to a table covered in dust and leaves in front of a small shop with one chair on the opposite side. Star was floating a couple inches above the ground in front of the table, gazing intensely at Robin and Raven. Beside her, in the chair, sat Beast Boy. Cyborg was right, he wasn't seriously hurt as far as Robin or Raven could tell—a purple and blue bruise covered most of his right cheek, a long slice cutting down his forehead, most of his clothes torn with small scratches covering what could be seen of his body. He merely looked as if he had been in a fight. But his face told otherwise, frozen in an expression of disbelief, shock, and very subtle fear. None of these things were what caused Raven's blood to run cold.

It was the fact that his hair was a bright red-orange, and brown freckles painting the white skin across his face and nose, accenting his deep, forest-green eyes.

He was…_normal_.


	4. Part 1: Half Explanations, Unfortunately

**Author's Note:** wow, been a long time since i've updated…woowoo. anywayz, hope u guys enjoy this next chapter! to give u a preview, it kinda explains a little more about what exactly happened to Beast Boy to make him gasp NORMAL. so yeah. srry its shorter, but i PROMISE i'm already workin on chapter five! IM SO FRIGGIN HAPPY! Now i've got like thirteen reviews for this fanfic, and if u guyz keep this up i'll have to go buy and mail u cookies or sumthin! ur personal replies are below, as always…and ONE MORE THING: i'm lookin for a joke about Beast Boy not being green that'll make Raven mad, so if u have any ideas, TELL ME AND I'LL LUV U FOREVER. oookay, mebe not forever, but u get the jist. toodles!

**TDG3RD: **yeah, i know its interesting and don't worry, its get even more so...srry again for the delay

**Pluiesang: **i luv that sentence too, and read ur new chapters, I DID!

**Smileyfacedudet:** we'll have to get a ambulance hotline or sumthin, then...

**HOORAY FOR YOU: **IM KEEPIN THE FAITH, IM KEEPING THE FAITH!

**rogueandkurt: **i luv my fanfic too. and of course i luv BB, me and him are tight!

**dragoon-bane: **God, i feel _terrible_, im sooo srry i didn't update sooner! FORGIVE ME

**devilleader: **yes he's really normal, no that's not how its gonna end and once again IM SO SRRY I DIDN'T DO THIS SOONER!

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

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Menlia Ragonu stared impassively at the surveillance screen, watching all the individuals scramble around the strip mall, going about their business as tiny ants scramble to do theirs. They were all as important to Menlia Ragonu as tiny ants, all intrigued with affairs that did not matter greatly in the least, but were deeply amusing to Menlia Ragonu just because the matters were so important to them. There, next to a tree outside the Old Navy entrance doors, stood a brother and sister, both around five, fighting over an ice cream cone. It was a petty argument, about who should get the next lick, and one could not help but give a small chuckle when the scoop of ice cream fell off the cone because both siblings tried to lick it for themselves at the same time. One could not help but shake one's head at the irony and arrogance of the situation.

Menlia Ragonu had long since passed by the uselessness of the rest of the world, worrying only of herself and nothing more. Or so she told herself. She hid in her office, lit with glowing black-lights and soft fluorescent lamps, computers covering one wall while shelves full of papers, books, beakers, tubes, broken Bunsen burners and broken microscopes covered another, not because she was afraid and scarred by the world's society; no, she sat at her desk layered with loose papers and examinations and sat on stools in front of her experiment table covered with chemicals and Petri dishes because she was observing the world around her so she could discover the ways to survive it. She had long ago learned how to tap into Jump City's surveillance cameras and systems in order to watch the people of the world she was so removed from and learn how to manipulate them, how to get from them what she wanted.

She had become quite good at it.

Menlia Ragonu typed in another password into one of the numerous computers, so displays of different areas in Jump City Downtown Mall appeared along the wall the computers were set against. Nothing exciting was happening today besides a minor disturbance on Old Alnon Highway, where an alley way had collapsed. The day had been quite ordinary, according to the individuals she watched. She suddenly gave a crude smile, looking like more of a pained grimace as it stretched and distorted her face. She usually did not smile.

The disturbance. _Her_ disturbance.

A short laugh rang out from Menlia Ragonu's lips, echoing harshly off the dark, cool brick walls of her office and sounding eerie even to her own ears. Yes, her disturbance that one had been. She had to admit, IDR56 was working out much more successfully than the other fifty-five. It was one of her experiments she could actually be proud of, it was so well-made and accurately created. She did not have a lot to be proud of in her life.

See, even though Menlia Ragonu told herself she did not care for little games of society and the world she so despised, there was one thing that bothered her beyond anything else. Even though Menlia Ragonu claimed she snorted at those outrageous games the world played, she played her own games that weren't too far off. Playing with people's minds for her own amusement was one thing she did well, and conquered. And she hated losing her little games. But there had always been one life she had wanted so badly to play with, to mess with, and she never could.

Until now.

The door to Menlia Ragonu's left slid open without warning, a lithe figure attired in all black slipping into the room. Menlia Ragonu did not turn, however, and the figure merely walked to a corner of the room and stood patiently waiting, no sound issuing forth. Then Menlia Ragonu finally turned, letting her eyes pierce the figure with an iron stare. Silence remained in the room for a few more minutes. Only when the silence was almost unbearable did Menlia Ragonu decide to speak.

"Did you accomplish your mission?"

The figure came forward with still no sound and laid a glove, torn and ripped in her outstretched hand. It nodded.

Menlia Ragonu felt another smile stretching back her cheeks, a wild sensation of adrenaline surging through her body, giving her eyes a strange, glistening look. She clutched the glove in her hands triumphantly, holding it tight against her chest.

"The smartest thing I did when I made you was making you silent and obedient," she whispered to her successful experiment, the black figure. She laughed again, surprised and pleased she had been able to laugh twice within ten minutes for the first time in a long time. She turned back to the screens showing the mall and switched them to where they were all trained on the distant Titan Tower. She spoke to IDR56, who continued to remain silent.

"And now, my diffident pet, we have our fun."

* * *

"But I am confused. Why must our friend stay in the infirmary of illness when he is not ill?" Starfire's huge eyes stared at Robin inquisitively, waiting for him to answer.

All the Titans had returned to the Tower, immediately rushing Beast Boy to the sick bay for assistance, though Starfire was right in the fact that he didn't seem very sick. Little was said on the way back, Beast Boy only responding to the few questions asked and everyone else too busy with transportation and preparing the infirmary through computer controls to prompt more conversation. Raven, Robin, and Starfire currently waited outside Beast Boy's rooms while Cyborg ran as many tests as he could to figure out what was going on with their "ungreen," as Starfire had put it, teammate. Raven was meditating next to the door of the infirmary, her voice a low, constant yet soothing murmur; Starfire was floating against the opposite wall, and Robin was pacing relentlessly between them in front of the door. He was anxious to get to his lab and begin investigating the dart and the black clad criminal, feeling useless at the moment. But he also didn't want to be the last on the team to know what was happening to one of his recruits. He cared about every single one of his friends, no matter that his attitude may seem so nonchalant at times, and had a tender spot for the young green shape-shifter that he and Cyborg had found for the first true member of the Teen Titans.

Robin shook his head in answer to Starfire's question, and knowing the motion had probably just confused her even more, he attempted to explain. "Beast Boy isn't sick with a disease or illness as far as we can tell, Star; Cyborg thinks it's something much deeper in Beast Boy's body." Robin stopped pacing and stood in front of Starfire to see whether she was gathering what he was telling her.

Starfire stared at him for a minute, and then asked, "Do you mean at the molecular level? Like when Silky grew large and uncontainable because the zorka berries changed him from the inside out?"

Robin nodded, reminded again that Starfire wasn't as alien and lost as everyone believed. "Yes, Cyborg thinks Beast Boy was changed from the inside out. Right now he's running tests to see exactly what was changed and if the change can be fixed." _And if Beast Boy will die because of the change_, Robin added silently.

Starfire continued to stare at him, but this time her eyes were distracted and her thoughts were once again to herself. Robin turned away and began pacing again, everyone reverting back to their former states: Raven meditating, Robin pacing, and Starfire floating. Suddenly Raven's murmuring stopped and both Robin and Starfire turned their heads towards her. She looked back at them, standing up as she did. "Cyborg's coming."

Starfire and Robin immediately lined up in front of the door beside Raven, watching the door nervously and waiting for the familiar _swoosh_ to sound as it opened. It was like they waited for ages, every second ticking by slowly as a sluggish and boring day would. When the door did slide open, all three were surprised and started as if they hadn't been expecting it to open and for Cyborg to walk through the door. Fixing their composures, they gazed into the face of him, the human side of his face painted with weariness. He gave a short smile then stated, "Come on in. It's time for a little family discussion."

He said it easily and carelessly, but both Raven and Robin glanced quickly at each other before they followed Starfire and Cyborg through the door. Both had sensed the hidden tightness in Cyborg's voice, and knew something was definitely wrong. They seemed to be on the same page a lot lately, so they silently agreed to be strong for the team if their strength was needed.

Robin shivered as the small group came fully into the room, unpleasant memories surfacing in his mind. Two beds lay in the center of the room, a huge flat screen behind them. The bed closest to the door was neatly made with crisp white sheets, only occupied by various instruments and machines scattered across it. Beast Boy sat on the other bed, closest to the window, an IV in his wrist and a few monitors attached here or there to his body. Robin blinked at the shock of red hair on top of Beast Boy's head and missed a stride. Although he had traveled with him back to the Tower, Robin had yet to get used to Beast Boy's new appearance. Raven hadn't as well, but she hid it much better than the other team members. The differences she saw also ran much deeper. Beast Boy slouched against the wall and metal headboard of the bed, his proud and usually hilarious stature gone. His face was void of any emotion, a pale, blank canvas avoiding the eyes of his friends. The only thing that didn't seem to have changed had in fact changed—his forest green eyes held no laughter or twinkling, but were so dull Raven almost ran over to slap his cheeks in order to assure herself he was still alive.

Beast Boy shifted a tad away from the door when he heard it open, more than aware that the eyes of his friends were searching him. He kept his face carefully empty of feeling, as Raven had noticed, but was in truth tortured by confusion and horror inside his mind. He had seen the slight nods of worry and heard the grunts of disapproval from Cyborg as he was being scrutinized by him. To say he was scared was the understatement of the year—he was _terrified_, and he didn't even know what he was so frightened of. The one member on the team he felt closest to—Cyborg—was extremely anxious for him, and he couldn't understand why. Beast Boy wouldn't question or ask what was going on, for fear Cyborg would give some pep talk to him or the others would come rushing to his rescue. Most of the time that was how it was for him, since he was one of the youngest on the team. Raven sometimes even babied him, when she was just a few months older. There had been few times he had actually allowed his friends to see his true feelings in the past, though they didn't believe that, and he wasn't about to start now. The whole Titan team was now present, waiting awkwardly for their "family discussion" to begin. With Starfire in the room, it didn't take very long.

Letting out a peep of excitement, she rushed straight for Beast Boy and hugged him in a fashion similar to the one she had used a few hours ago, but the headlock was a lot gentler. "Oh friend! You are fine, and I am glad!" Beast Boy had no choice but to turn and acknowledge her, putting Robin, Cyborg, and Raven in his view. He decided he'd rather face his friends than snap his back in half.

"Yeah, Star," Robin said, walking forward and pulling Starfire off Beast Boy. He glanced over at Cyborg as he did so. "If he's fine, we're all glad."

Raven moved forward too, stopping at the edge of Beast Boy's bed. Starfire and Robin stood at the side of his bed and Cyborg came up to stand beside the headboard and computer controls.

"So." Everyone looked towards Raven, waiting for her to continue. It was typically easier to let her get to the point. She was the most efficient. "Since no one else will ask it, I will: What happened?"

Cyborg began typing furiously on the computer's keyboard, calling up numerous files until he had the ones he wanted. Beast Boy's outline and medical status appeared on the huge screen covering the wall behind the group, mapping his blood pressure, heart rate, brain waves and so on. Cyborg faced the group and said to Beast Boy, "According to everything I threw at you health wise, B.B., you're fine."

"Well…I feel fine, so no real surprise there," he replied timidly. He had a feeling Cyborg wasn't done. So did the rest of the team.

"Yeah, no surprise." Cyborg leaned against the wall. "But you're not really terrific, either." He pushed himself up from the wall and leaned on the headboard of the bed. "You said you were hit by a bomb?" Beast Boy nodded slowly, guessing this was going to go somewhere he wouldn't like.

Cyborg sighed. "Hate to break it to you, man, but you don't get hit by a bomb and survive. At least in one piece."

"So what are you saying?" Robin asked, puzzled. "That wasn't a bomb? Cyborg, the whole alley and part of a street—"

"_Collapsed_. Not exploded, or blew up; the buildings didn't fly apart in chunks of bricks or whatever. The street and alley caved in."

"Why then did the street cave upon the sewer, if the street was not blown into chunks of bricks or whatever by Beast Boy's bomb?" Starfire watched as Cyborg opened his mouth to answer. Raven did instead.

"Because this 'bomb' wasn't meant to cause any type of physically forced…damage. Something other than it made everything collapse," she stated calmly, as if anyone could've come to that conclusion as quickly and precisely as she had. She gazed at Cyborg, then added, "The 'bomb' was meant to target and cause damage to things much more subtle."

"Right," Cyborg said, nodding his approval. "Whatever the bomb was, it wasn't what we're used to, and something either was in sync with the bomb to make the street collapse, or it was a total coincidence."

"Alright," Robin said, starting to understand. "But what do you mean, that the bomb was targeted towards something subtle?" The question was directed at Raven, but she didn't explain, just looked to Cyborg and waited. Robin did the same.

Cyborg readjusted his position uneasily, then went again to the computer controls. "It's…" His voice trailed off leaving the others anxiously attentive. He shook his head suddenly, then asked, "Everyone knows how radiation works, right? Wavelengths, nuclei and everything?"

Robin slowly nodded and Raven narrowed her eyes, Starfire did not say anything but continued to listen carefully, and Beast Boy began to get even more perturbed than ever. Cyborg heaved a sigh and rubbed his human eye with one of his hands. "Okay, I'll lay it out: that bomb dosed out radiation."

Raven's eyes narrowed further, and Beast Boy stared at Cyborg. Why was that such a tragedy? Starfire kept the interested listening expression on her face. Robin's heartbeat quickened a little, however, and he instantly asked, "How much? What type?"

Cyborg responded equally as fast. "Don't panic or anything, Robin, I wouldn't have let anyone in here if it wasn't save." He looked around the room, as if debating whether he really wanted to continue explaining or not.

"Here's the whole strange part. The radiation released by the bomb was all over the place when I requested a scan of the area from my system and the Titan system. It was covering at least within a 250 mile circumference." Robin began to groan, but Cyborg silenced him by going on. "I'm not done—apparently it affected nothing it touched. No plants or humans keeled over and died, no cells of as far as I could tell were destroyed in any ways, and nothing got sick. The food, water, and other substances in the area were completely safe, no contamination. The worst injuries people sustained, according to the police and hospital records, were sprains or cuts and scrapes from the collapsing road and alley."

Robin didn't groan, now looking at Cyborg with more puzzlement and disbelief. "Then what kind of radiation was it?" he demanded, wishing he had gone to work on the evidence he had gathered about the attack. He wasn't big in the medical world.

Cyborg shrugged. "It isn't anything I've ever seen. No gamma rays, no irregular isotopic signatures, no beta rays. Nothing. It seems either very random, or a type of radiation that only affects—"

"—Me." All heads turned towards Beast Boy, seeing as it was the first word he had spoken in the conversation. He glanced from face to face. "But why?"

Raven gave him her best answer. "We lost him at one point when we were chasing him. The attacker." She paused. "He had been waiting in the fire escape all along."

Silence weighed down on the room as everyone put together in their own minds what Raven was inferring. Robin was the first to speak. "A trap. The attack, the bomb, the street—you're saying it was all an elaborate trap."

Raven gave a grim smile. "Something like that."

"But why the street? Was it a coincidence?"

"An attempt to slow us down while the attacker of black escaped, possibly?" Starfire offered, her determined reason at once making sense.

"It worked if that was the reason," Cyborg said. "His bomb also worked." Cyborg typed in a code and Beast Boy's genetic code began to form on the screen. "You've heard the strange news. Here's the bad news: the radiation completely altered you're DNA, B.B."

"What does that mean…?" He actually had a good idea what that meant.

"It means your genetic code has changed to physically represent you as something else, and God knows what else. It could've changed your genes to favor any kind of hereditary disease, or it could've mutated you're genes to where you could suddenly develop a tumor on your big toe—" His voice began to rise, though he didn't really seem to notice. "It means a _hell_ of a lot, Beast Boy. I don't know half of it! I _do_ know that while it seems to have made your genetic code unpredictable, it also stabilized it…" Cyborg stopped to take a shaky breath. He was leaned over the computer controls, his eyes boring into the keyboard as he spoke. "Man, your powers, anything that would let you change into any type of animal, are _gone_!"

There it was. What Cyborg had been afraid to tell the team the whole time. But Beast Boy didn't care about that; he would deal with it later. He knew Cyborg was wrong about one thing. His genetic code wasn't altered or whatever. It had simply been reversed, back to the way it was when he was a little toddler, with nothing extraordinary about him. He also knew one thing that vexed him the most, and would for a very, _very_ long time.

"But why _me_?" Beast Boy asked again.

His voice sounded small and hollow in the infirmary with its opened ceilings and landscaped window, as if he was asking anyone besides his friends standing around him. He probably was. The rest of the team stared at him, having no answers or explanations to give.


	5. Part 1: Byebye!

**Author's Note:** aw, man, i feel extremely guilty—srry for making u guyz wait so long once again. see, i had this chapter divided into two before, but then it didn't flow as well and i was stretching it out too long, so i was just like whatever, i'll just make it one chapter…so yeah, that took forever to do after it took forever for me to write the two chapters. srry once again! i just got wrapped up in junk…whew. it is NOT easy, writing a fanfic, no matter wat u've been told. but anywayz, don't worry friends, this fanfic is far from over…i also hav a favor to ask of those who read my jabbering—if you have any information on Teen Titan characters from the comics, share ur knowledge! U'll find out soon enough wat it'll be used for, and by the kindness of **TGD3RD** and my own creativity, i already hav a few ideas up my sleeve. so now to ur personal replies and further into the story…

**rogueandkurt:** and now i'm back again…MUHAHAHA. heehee, jk. interesting questions, but i'm not gonna answer them (grins mischeviously) of course, u keep guessin like this and u'll hav the plot down in no time….IEEHH! srry i didn't update sooner!

**TTstorm: **i'm glad ur loving this story, and i can't wait to see wat happens next either! GNAH. again, i'm srry for the delay…

**BolenPUCR: **don't worry, u won't be disappointed in the BBRae interaction…oy, i'm gonna have to start making official apologies at the top for not updating sooner, i'm getting tired of having to keep writing them out…(massages temples)

**TDG3RD:** man, u are like one of the best reviewers ever! Sticking with me like this…don't kno how u do it. thanx for the emails and advice, and i'm giving half of the credit for my non-green jokes in this chapter to u!

**dragoon-bane: **SRRY ABOUT THE DELAY. Seriously, u guyz'll see a huge apology in bold at the top next time, if i take too long again…

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

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* * *

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"Have you tried opening a slot in S.T.A.R.R labs for him? They have the best medical care for metahumans in the world and might be able to help."

Superman's face loomed over Robin and Cyborg on the transmit screen, waiting for a response to his suggestion. Batman also listened to the conversation, his face sharing the screen with Superman's. Both had graciously stopped their normal rounds to talk with Robin and Cyborg about Beast Boy's dilemma. Robin now stood in front of the screen, Cyborg leaning against a table further back. After the team had finished their discussion, Raven stayed behind to monitor Beast Boy's health while Starfire had left the Tower to talk to Jump City's police department about the whole attack and whether any leads had been picked up. Robin had left rather hastily to the main room, taking Cyborg with him. Cyborg had obediently followed, though without a clue of what Robin was going to do. He had been easily surprised when Robin told him that he had put in a call for Superman and Batman, knowing of the tensions between Robin and his mentor. No outbreaks had happened yet, however, and the conversation so far had actually been civilized.

"We don't need physicians," Cyborg countered, a little more fiercely than he had meant to. "We need geneticists, we need nanosurgeons; probably radiologists too. Anyone who can figure out what radiation caused Beast Boy's genes to go whack and how to reverse it."

"S.T.A.R.R. is known for their technology concerning metahumans, which includes those types of professions, Cyborg," Superman replied.

"But they would have to run numerous tests, which could take weeks, and analyze the results, which would take months. We don't know if he'd agree to sit and let strangers prod him for that long."

"Yes, but it's not as if he would be cut off from the rest of the world either, Robin. Most likely he'd be able to leave when they aren't testing him, and he wouldn't have to stay at the facility while they analyze the tests. He'd be perfectly fine."

"Unless they determined the radiation he was exposed to is dangerous in some way," Batman commented. Superman's eyes flickered to where Batman must have been on his monitor screen. He raised an eyebrow slightly as if to ask Batman whose side he was really on. "It's true. S.T.A.R.R. has an obligation to keep humans as well as metahumans safe."

"Whatever hit Beast Boy, though, we know is _not_ dangerous," Robin said, almost hotly.

"You don't _know_ that. You're just assuming."

Cyborg quickly broke in before Robin decided to shoot a stupid remark back. "No one else has complained of average radiation reactions, or died because of mysterious reasons, according to the police and health department. As far as we can tell, the only effects of the radiation have concerned Beast Boy."

"As far as _you_ can tell."

Okay. Cyborg was beginning to see why Robin wasn't always too fond of Batman.

"The most we can do for you is guarantee an appointment at the facility, and we'll only do that if your friend is willing," Superman sighed, noticing tensions were starting to climb. "So at least run the idea by him."

"We can do that."

"Send a module of his genetic code to me."

"_What?_" Cyborg exclaimed, not meaning to be rude—but he was a little perturbed. Someone's genetic code isn't exactly something you should give out.

"Why?" Robin questioned a second later.

"I didn't become a crime fighter by sheer luck." Robin fumed a bit, Cyborg and Superman left to wonder if Batman had meant that remark the way Robin was taking it. "I can study it myself, and possibly help the situation."

"We just can't hand out his personal information—"

"To a complete stranger?" Robin scowled. "Have it sent to my headquarters." The screen went black on Batman's side, since he apparently had decided to sign off. Robin turned around, his back facing Superman so he could fume a bit more in peace.

"…I'll see about S.T.A.R.R. Call me up again if he wants to go on and try it." Superman gazed at Robin's back and waited for Cyborg's unsure "Sure," before he signed off. As soon as both heroes had gone back to their own concerns, the room became awfully quiet. Cyborg let Robin continue in silence a little longer, then came up to his side. "Is he always that impossible?"

Robin gave a harsh chuckle and turned to face Cyborg with a sigh. "Yeah. This time he also didn't want to talk to me."

Cyborg's forehead raised in query, and he waited for Robin's explanation. Robin sighed and gazed up at his teammate. "You know what I have to do if we can't find a way to get Beast Boy back to…the way he was." It was a statement, not a question.

Cyborg stared at Robin, knowing exactly what Robin would have to do. "I hope I don't."

Robin meant Cyborg's eyes, guessing that Cyborg knew. "I don't want to," Robin practically whispered. He cleared his voice, and said more strongly, "It's not fair. It happened to me, and it wasn't fair. But I have to. You know?" _That_ was a question. A pleading one, too.

"Yeah," Cyborg said, placing a hand on Robin's shoulder. "I understand." He just hoped that Beast Boy would understand. "Let's go ask B.B. about this S.T.A.R.R. lab thing first," Cyborg continued after a pause. "No need to rush." _Or__ give up hope,_ he thought.

* * *

**Two Days Later (if you want to know):**

Steve Dayton rested his head on the seat's headrest, trying to calm his gurgling stomach as the airplane he rode violently rocked back and forth, the fasten seatbelts signs glowing orange and blinking. His stomach was bothering for two reasons: one, because this was the worst turbulence he had ever experienced in his life of plane trips across the globe, and two, because he was at last only an hour away from seeing the foster son he had not seen for over two years.

He had heard of the many victories of the Teen Titans, praising them for their success whenever he had the chance, and freely suffering with them in their losses and defeats as well. It was hard, letting who he considered to be his son live a life full of danger as the changeling superhero Beast Boy, but Steve himself had learned how to live a life full of hidden fear and apprehension towards his son nothing was supposed to be wrong. None of the other Titans, from what Steve knew, had parents, family members, or guardians on or near Earth. It was public gossip turned to knowledge that Robin's family was dead, Starfire for certain an alien, and Raven…well, no one knew much of that one, but it taken pretty much for fact that she had no relations whatsoever as well. Cyborg, the half-human and half-machine one, might have parents or siblings somewhere, but Steve had been strictly told that he was not to contact anyone who may be related to or close to one of the Titans, and he was never to reveal his relation to Beast Boy for safety and threat purposes. The rule was enforced strongly by Jump City's local government and the United States government, along with many of the members of the famous Justice League, so Steve wasn't to keen to break it.

Even if he might be lonely in his quiet worry for the Teen Titan Beast Boy, Steve was still grateful for what contact and privileges he was presented in this area. Being an international social worker for America, Steve Dayton was rarely at Jump City, where his residence was presently recorded. He had never moved his residence or base office of operations away from there, wanting to remain as close as possible to the Titans when his work didn't call for him. A two bedroom apartment downtown was under his name and covered in dust, so rarely was he there. His work interfered with Steve ever having a typical life and his contact with his son. Emails aren't always the best form of family love. Two visits were allowed a year for Steve to see him, but Steve was usually at of town if not across the world during these assigned times. At first Steve was frustrated he was never able to make the meetings, then he finally made a compromise with those who regulated the meetings and his employers: he would always be allowed to take a week to spend with Beast Boy at his birthday, as he had originally asked Robin and Cyborg.

This compromise performed greatly for the first year, but soon it proved useless as Steve's most important meetings and work events began to mysteriously fall upon the same days he was going to spend time in Jump City. That's why Steve was so excited about flying into Jump City, because he was ready to see his son and catch up in his live. And according to the emails Steve had been receiving for the past week, he wasn't the only one excited. It had taken many hot discussions and tedious persuasive talks for Steve to gain the week's rest he was now taking in Jump City, but when it was granted, it hadn't taken much time for Steve to pack his bags and be ready for the next flight out.

So now Steve was sitting in an airplane thirty minutes away from Jump City, trying not to cover the back of a woman's head with half-digested peanuts and beer, his luggage below him, thinking about what cleaner would be best for removing inches of dirt or dust, or if you even _used_ cleaner. He really hoped his son hadn't changed that much.

* * *

He was almost packed.

It was a relevant fact, cardboard boxes lying scattered around the room, posters stripped from the walls and leaving dusty, off-color rectangular patches where they had been resting only a day before. The bunk bed was neatly made for once, no wrinkles ruining the smooth, sky-blue sheets. Various comic books and Sports Illustrated or the rare and usually snitched Playboy magazines had vanished from the ground and bookshelf, any trace of clutter lifted from the spotless, carpeted floor. No alarm clock gleamed on a desk, and no video games littered the small television table. Curtains were gone from the squat window beside the top bunk bed, a shadow of harsh light shining in the room to give it a dull, sun bleached look. If Beast Boy hadn't known better, he would've said there could be no possible way this had once been his room—it appeared too clean, to unlived in. But then again, that's what he was trying to do, make it looked as if it had never been lived in, right?

Beast Boy was standing in the center of the desolate space, next to him a stool with a medium-sized suitcase on it. It was half-full of books, video games and some clothes, but all seemed as if they had messily been thrown in moments before, which actually had happened. Two boxes were stacked beside the suitcase and stool, set apart from the rest of the boxes milling around the bookshelf and bed on one side of the room, and around the desk and cabinet dresser on the other side of the room. The top box was still opened, its black mouth yawning for more objects. The bottom box was sealed safely with duct tape wrapped around all corners of it—Beast Boy wasn't the best packer—and the words _"Closet Stuff"_ were scrawled slapdash on all the sides in black marker. Most of the other boxes were already sealed and ready for storage. The cabinet dresser was still covered in papers, trash, dirty socks, and nachos, though, in contrast to the speck-free room surrounding it. A large, empty aquarium sat on the desk next to the cabinet, a desk lap to the left of it. It had taken Beast Boy a day and a half to get his room into this condition, which was pretty good for him; he had worked on it day and night, cleaning and packing, really the one thing he could do to keep himself busy. He had no desire to see the others, and snuck out of his room for snacks so he wouldn't starve each night only when he couldn't hear anyone through the air conditioning vent on his wall. He had learned about two years ago his vent connected directly to the Tower's main room and kitchen. And they said he wasn't resourceful.

Beast Boy reached up his hand to hold his nose as he felt a sneeze come on, probably triggered by the loose dust floating in the room; suddenly he halted the hand as it came into his view, a pale white ghost of an arm. He glanced timidly behind his back, catching a glimpse of the bright red hair he now sported and a pale, freckled face with forest-green eyes in the mirror sitting on the cabinet dresser…an image that he was slowly forcing himself to think as his. He shivered, sneezing at the same time. It was as hard to him as it was to his teammates to get used to his new look. Every time he caught a glimpse of his reflection, it was hard for him not to double-back and make sure it was him. He didn't wear his Teen Titan uniform anymore—all of them were packed up in one of the boxes next to the bookshelf, taped tightly shut. Now he was wearing tennis shoes, a pair of cargo shorts, an old white T-shirt and a blue, button-down shirt unbuttoned with sleeves rolled back to his elbows overtop. An outfit you usually wouldn't catch a Teen Titan in, that's for sure.

And he didn't want to be caught in it, either. In fact, the whole outfit somewhat disgusted him—of course it wasn't the clothes' fault. It wasn't even his fault. He was wearing the clothes of an average teenager, and even he wasn't such an idiot that he didn't know what that was supposed to mean. On two scarce occasions would the Titans be out of uniform: they were going undercover, or they had something personal to attend to, not concerning their superhero agenda. Both ways, the Titans would not be meant to be a part of the team for that period of time. They would be on leave, only contacting the team for emergency or useful information.

Worst thing was that two days ago, Beast Boy found out he wouldn't be donning his costume anymore, for neither of those scarce two reasons.

_"No!"_

_The word had been flat and hard in Beast Boy's mouth as he had spit it out. A strange ferocity usually absent in Beast Boy's whole personality, let alone his voice, had been present then; it had been so vicious Cyborg had involuntarily taken a step back. Beast Boy had ignored the taken aback expression on Cyborg's face, crossing his arms sternly. _

_"But Beast Boy—" Robin had tried again, only to be interrupted again._

_"_No_. I won't." They just hadn't seemed to get the message._

_Robin had sighed and put a hand to his forehead, clearly exasperated. "Why are you being so stubborn? Right now it's the only chance you have! Cyborg may be genius, but he can't fix your _genetic code_." _

_Beast Boy had glared at Robin and then had switched to Cyborg, wanting to believe Cyborg could fix everything. Cyborg had shaken his head. "I'm sorry, B.B., but Robin's right on this one. S.T.A.R.R. is the top facility for superheroes and such in the world, and they have the best chance of helping you."_

_Beast Boy had been silent for a minute, both Cyborg and Robin wishing he was thinking the proposition through and changing his mind. They had been disappointed. Beast Boy had had more than enough experience with hospitals than he had ever wanted—people aren't always anxious to let a green boy from __Africa__ come to __America__ unquestioningly. Nearly two years of his life had been spent in a smelly, disgusting research lab in __North Africa__ before he was allowed overseas. He hated that process, and now had a personal vengeance against any form of a hospital. _

_"I'm sorry, I just…can't."_

_Robin had thrown up his arms, collapsing at the end of the couch. Beast Boy had looked away, and Cyborg had walked in a tight circle once, at loss for what to do next. A distant siren sounded somewhere in the city, seagulls cawing at the docks. Standing up again, Robin had crossed his arms and stared at Beast Boy, who had been sitting on the back of the couch, carefully observing the bay as it gleamed outside. "Fine." Cyborg and Beast Boy had turned to him. "Fine. But that was your last resort."_

_Beast Boy had kept looking at Robin, confused for a minute. "What's that supposed to mean?"_

_"Exactly what I said. It meant _exactly_ what I said." Cyborg had peered quickly at Robin, Beast Boy seeing out of the corner of his eye but Robin ignoring him. The team leader had been frustrated about the whole situation, and had wanted to get over what he had to get over._

_Beast Boy had shaken his head. Robin's meaning had totally escaped him. "Dude, I—" _

_"I can't let you fight crime like _this_." Robin had waved a hand at Beast Boy, obviously referring to Beast Boy's ungreen and powerless state. The expression on Cyborg's face had made him look as if he felt like smacking Robin—clearly, he hadn't thought you should crush someone's life with a temper._

_"And what's _that_ supposed to mean?" Beast Boy had commanded, standing up defensively. His temper was starting to rise, too._

_"It _means_…" Without any warning all the fight had left Robin, and he had turned his back to Beast Boy abruptly, running a gloved hand through his hair. "Unless we can ensure your safety, you can't be put in danger." Robin's voice had cracked, and he turned around again. "Your powers ensured your safety before, but now…" He had looked at Beast Boy desperately, silently begging him to understand as he had with Cyborg. _

_Beast Boy had stared at Robin, stunned. "You're kicking me _off_"_

_Cyborg had grimaced when Beast Boy shouted the last word. Robin had stepped back, shaking his head. Neither had said anything._

_"You—you can't…that's not…You're joking, you have to be." Beast Boy had attempted to give a weak laugh, but instead had felt an unbelievable urge to turn into the smallest living thing possible and hide. Lucky him, he could've done that anytime four days ago. _

_Cyborg had cut in, wanting to offer once again a way out. "It's not too late, you can still go to S.T.A.R.R.—"_

_A livid flame then had suddenly lit up in Beast Boy's chest, making him feel light and dizzy. _This isn't happening_, he had thought. _This isn't happening_. "NO!_I will not go to a freaking hospital_. It'd be like kicking me off the team anyways, either way you win—"_

_"No one's trying to _win_ anything, B.B.—"_

_"How could you guys do this to me?" Beast Boy had blinked his eyes furiously, his vision blurring at the edges. Robin had still been shaking his head, his mouth in a straight, thin line. Cyborg had simply gazed at Beast Boy, afraid to say the wrong thing at the wrong time. "This isn't fair."_

_At Beast Boy's last word, Robin had snapped out of his spell, his head ceasing to shake. "I'm sorry…Beast Boy. Your foster father is on the way, and everything was prepared to contact him if you were to refuse other offers."_

_"But—why can't I still live here? I don't have to fight—" It had been a weak argument, Beast Boy knew, but he had been hopelessly grasping at anything. _

_"Remember the time Slade breached the security defenses? I'm sorry. Don't make this hard."_

_"But that was Terra's—"_

_"I'm sorry, Beast Boy. Please."_

Beast Boy had watched his two friends helplessly, his mouth slightly open in disbelieve that they were actually going through with this. He had tried to say something more, but couldn't. Numbly, he had then left them standing there and had made his way to his room, telling himself this was all a bad dream. A _very_ bad dream. As soon as he got into his room, he had sat on the bottom bunk and pulled his knees to his chest.

Later he had found out from Cyborg also that Robin and he had spoken to Superman and Batman three days before. He also found out that both of the leading superheroes really hadn't been too enthusiastic about his "recovery". Yeah right. Beast Boy knew how it worked. When all else fails, send them for probing to keep everyone busy and out of trouble.

Beast Boy suddenly collapsed against the desk behind him, almost missing it completely because he had been so far away. He leaned against it, staring up at the ceiling. _Whoa_, he thought. _Since when did I become so cynical?_ He was starting to sound like Raven. Or at least Robin on a bad day.

He jerked his head up at the _hiss_ and quiet click of the door to his room beginning to open, quickly standing up and desperately looking for something to leap behind so he could hide. Not that he was afraid of seeing any of his friends of course, he was just…okay, maybe he was a little afraid. But it didn't matter anyway, because unless he sprinted for the closet and pulled the door shut in less than a second, there wasn't anywhere for him to go. Sighing, he turned as the door slid all the way open, a guilty and tense kind of half-smile slapped on his face. It disappeared, though, as soon as he saw who was standing hesitantly at his door, shifting weight from leg to leg.

It was Raven.

He stood staring at her for a second, surprised and petrified at the same time. He had taken careful precautions as to not run into her for the past couple of days—and now here she was, standing at his door…striding in after another moment's hesitation…giving him a small smile as the door swooshed shut…and he continued staring at her. Her large, navy eyes stared at him, too, and she stopped in front of him. "Hi," she said almost shyly, but with her face remaining blank.

Abruptly realizing how ridiculous he must look, Beast Boy swiftly turned around, grabbing a sock off the cabinet dresser and going over to the suitcase. "Uh, hi," he said quickly, smoothing out the sock to keep his hands busy. Raven didn't answer, and Beast Boy delicately laid the sock in the suitcase, on top of the _MEGAS RX_ video game. An awkward silence settled over the two friends, with both bursting to explain their feelings to the other but not quite knowing how to start. So they didn't start.

Beast Boy sniffed and cleared his throat, pointedly keeping his eyes on the ground. He stole a glance at Raven, who was now watching the stacked boxes with examining eyes. Beast Boy opened his mouth to say something, but a strange little squeak emerged instead. Embarrassed beyond all reason, he blushed vividly as Raven turned her head towards him again, and looked at him questioningly. He scratched his ear and tried again, staring at the suitcase now. "Was…was there something you needed?"

"No," she replied, shaking her head. "Not really. I just wanted to see how you were doing."

Wow. Raven coming to see how he was doing? That was a definite first. He shrugged. "Um, I'm doing fine. Almost packed." He gestured vaguely towards the boxes.

"Oh. That's…good." Even with her monotone voice in place, Beast Boy could tell she didn't mean it.

Silence stretched on again, causing Beast Boy to go over and grab a couple of papers that most likely didn't mean anything to him at all, but he grabbed them just the same to keep his hands busy. He began folding them to stuff in a pocket of the suitcase, when he looked up at Raven, determined to find out if was here to talk to him about something important or just to say goodbye. Raven was apparently getting ready to tell him, for they both opened their mouths and spoke at the same time.

"I hope you—"

"Listen, I just wanted to—"

Both stopped at the same time, too, waiting for the other to go on.

"Sorry, you can go on," Beast Boy said apologetically.

"No, you started first," Raven opposed.

"I can wait."

Neither were too sure whether they wanted to share now.

Raven turned her head towards the small window. "You haven't been around lately. You know, always in here." She turned back towards him.

"Yeah, well I've been busy." He put the papers in a pocket, bracing himself against the top of the suitcase. He gazed at the tough, brown leather, knowing Raven was studying him.

"I know this isn't going to sound like something I would ask, but bear with me," Raven blurted without warning. Beast Boy looked up at her face curiously. His green eyes locked on her navy-blue ones as she spoke again. "Are you sure you're okay with…everything that's been happening? The change and resignation? You locked yourself up in here after you talked to Cyborg and Robin, and haven't come out for at least two days. Longer than me and that's saying something."

She waited for his answer, and he pulled his eyes back to the suitcase. "Yeah. I'm sure I'm fine." He got up and went over to the desk, reaching over and taking the lamp off of the desktop. He wound up the cord as he walked back over to the suitcase, and began to try to put the lamp into the top box stacked next to the stool. "Why wouldn't I be?"

If Raven had been allowed to show emotion, Beast Boy was pretty sure she would've rolled her eyes and slapped him. He would've slapped himself. Instead she simply said, "I don't think you are."

"Then you're wrong," Beast Boy said stubbornly, though at the exact moment he was thinking, _She's__ right, she's right._ "I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" He repeated faintly. He hefted the lamp and tried to place it in the box again. "Now I can go out in public without someone asking if I have cousins on Mars or if I ate too much broccoli."

It was an extremely stupid joke, and Beast Boy immediately wished he hadn't made it. Suddenly a loud crack sounded, echoing deafeningly across the room and down the air vent, making Beast Boy jump a couple inches into the air as glass shards flew at the opposite wall, burying themselves in the plaster. One narrowly missed Beast Boy's head. Open-mouthed, he turned look at Raven just as her hair settled back along her face, his aquarium demolished and in pieces on the desk. Only the plastic bottom remained, with a few jagged glass shards sticking up from the base. He gaped at the scene, wondering if anything else had blown up that might've been more important.

"That's not something to joke about," Raven said calmly, her temper under control again. "It wasn't funny, either."

Beast Boy dropped the lamp in the box, still a tad stunned. He nodded speechlessly, unsure of what to say next.

"I exploded a couple of dishes when I found out you were leaving," Raven pointed out, quieter than usual. She looked away from Beast Boy as she said it. "I would prefer to leave the tally at that and your aquarium, if you don't mind."

"I…sure." Beast Boy finally said. He silently went over and stood against the cabinet dresser, next to Raven. She looked back at him, taking a moment to see the barely perceptible dancing present in Beast Boy's eyes, one she hadn't seen since that morning downtown. Confused, she shifted unnerved. The corners of Beast Boy's mouth tugged upwards. "A couple of dishes? So…guess that means I'm not unbearably annoying after all, huh?"

Raven resisted the urge to smile too, even though she was equally embarrassed and irked at the same time. "Don't bet on it," she stated evenly. Beast Boy's smile widened, his dark mood momentarily forgotten.

"I won't," he teased, earning a death glare from Raven.

They were interrupted by the _hiss_ and click of the door opening, and both turned to see Robin standing there, a worried expression on his face. He stared at the two as they stared at him, as surprised as Beast Boy had been to have a visit from Raven to find them in a room, alone, with Beast Boy unharmed. Beast Boy's bright mood instantly expired at sight of Robin, memories of his dismissal from the team sharp in his mind again.

"Sorry, I thought I heard…an explosion or something," Robin said, tentatively looking at Raven. She was looking at Beast Boy, noticing his blank face and dull eyes were back. She felt Robin's eyes on her and pointed at the aquarium.

"You did."

Robin's eyes processed the image of the aquarium, wondering as Beast Boy had whether anything else had blown up that might've been more important. "Right…uh, sorry." He quickly left, not wanting to be around Beast Boy anymore than he had to. The door slid shut, leaving Beast Boy and Raven alone again. Beast Boy was impassively staring at the shut door.

Raven watched him a moment more. "Well," she said, guessing her time with Beast Boy had come to a halt. She was very perceptive on knowing when people wanted to be left alone—takes one to know one, as the saying went. "If you're okay, then I promised Starfire I'd go to the mall with her for a while. There's some left over pizza in the fridge if you want some. Cheese pizza." Raven stepped over to the door.

Beast Boy's conscience jerked awake again. "Right. Thanks. Have fun." He didn't mean to sound abrupt, but he couldn't do much to help it.

Raven hovered by the door a little longer, waiting to see if Beast Boy had any last words. He grabbed some more socks, however, and headed back over to his suitcase. Raven mentally sighed, then went out of the room, leaving Beast Boy as she had found him: alone.

* * *

Steve Dayton swiftly pulled out his cell phone as it vibrated on his belt, heaving his carry on baggage out from underneath of his chair. He flipped it open and held it to his ear, simultaneously trying not to drop his laptop off his shoulder and losing his suitcase in the hustle everyone was putting forth to leave the plane. _You'd__ think they were all running from their deaths,_ he thought irritably. "Hello?" he said in a much nicer tone than he felt like using. This had better be good.

"Hello Mr. Dayton," replied an emotionless, bass voice. It cackled with static, and Steve had the feeling he was about to listen to a month-old recorded message concerning the benefits he would experience if he switched to Bellsouth or something along those lines. Before he could hang up, however, the next phrase captivated him into listening carefully and thoroughly.

"This is Agent Smith Nukles of the Crime Investigation Alliance Department, contacting you on behalf of your foster son, whose name will not be disclosed at this point for safety purposes."

Steve grabbed his suitcase and pushed his way into the aisle, following the flow of passengers off the plane, keeping the phone close to his ear. It was definitely a recorder message, but he kept listening sincerely wishing this call was going to be about something extremely good. _Wishing_, note.

"This call is only to be forwarded in the case of an emergency," Steve let out a groan, causing others around him to glance at him, annoyed. He was now walking down the metal chute to the gate, as fast as possible. "This message may also be forwarded in the case of a serious malpractice or death concerning your foster son's involvement with the crime fighting team the Teen Titans." Steve didn't groan this time, but blinked once and swallowed a mouth full of air, now wishing for the first or second reason mentioned. His pace slowed a bit. "The next recorded message will be a detailed account of the situation from the Teen Titans leader or law enforcement leader of Jump City. Please wait a moment." The line went silent for a second, causing Steve to stop completely, then came alive again with the solemn voice of a young man. Steve began walking again, beginning to feel suffocated in the small chute as the suspense continued.

"Mr. Dayton, this is leader of the Teen Titans, codename Robin, speaking. I am contacting you on behalf of your foster son, codename Beast Boy." Steve Dayton ruled out the possibility of malpractice, thinking the law enforcement leader would be talking now if it were so. That still left two other unpleasant situations unreckoned for.

Steve was now outside the chute, and stepped over to listen to the rest of the message right outside the loading area. "Last Saturday, date 4-21-00 (**A/N:** fill it in), around ten hundred hours, codename Beast Boy was hit and exposed to an unknown radiation by an unknown criminal figure." Steve sucked in a deep breath through squeezed lips, the ground rushing up at him. He then felt a little better at the next sentence, but he became suspicious as well. "Codename Beast Boy experienced no traumatic injuries, nor did he experience any of the effects of average radiation dosage.

"Instead, I am sad to say, this unknown radiation caused a mutation of codename Beast Boy's genetic code, changing his physical appearance and eliminating his metahuman abilities. It is the Teen Titans' duty to care for the citizens of Jump City and keep them safe from harm. Mr. Dayton, your foster son is now a citizen of Jump City, his leadership position of a metahuman protector withheld at the loss of his powers. Being in immediate danger at the Teen Titans headquarters and in the presence of any Teen Titans members, codename Beast Boy cannot stay with the Teen Titans law-enforcing unit without violating all protocol made towards the unit's situation. He is scheduled to leave headquarters in twenty-six hours; a helicopter will rendezvous with you at San Francisco airport to bring you immediately to Jump City. As codename Beast Boy's legal guardian, you are required to care for him as of March 23, 0000 (**A/N:** fill it in, again), until codename Beast Boy is of legal age, or a remedy has been found for his condition. Thank you for your time."

The line went dead with a small click, leaving Steve to stare at the luggage trolley cruising by with clear incredulity. He slowly brought the cell phone down from his ear as passengers continued to trickle out of the loading chute, and shoved the phone in his pants pocket. He reached down to pick up his suitcase and carry-on baggage, pondering whether the whole call had been cruel prank. While he was thinking up reasons someone would want to pull something like that one him, a petite, dark female pilot appeared out of nowhere beside him. She was dressed in the normal uniformed attire of Delta airlines, and a small, glossy gold pin read 'Pilot Chanvez' on her shirt front. She was at least two feet shorter than Steve's towering frame, but her black eyes darted back and forth against his form as she observed him. Clearing his throat, Steve asked rather politely, "Yes? Can I help you?"

"You Steve Dayton?" she asked back, her voice lower and huskier than he would have expected. Her pilot hat sat over her eyes now, so Steve couldn't guess why she wanted him.

"Yeah, that's me, ma'am." He paused for her to tell him.

"A helicopter due to leave to Jump City in twenty minutes is waiting for you on the roof up the staircase five gates to the left of here," Chavez said lightly, handing him a slip of paper that looked very similar to a ticket. "Give this to the pilot."

Steve took the paper, knowing with a sick feeling the phone message had not been a prank or joke of any kind at all. He stared at the paper for a moment longer, then took off at the fastest sprint he could carrying at least twenty extra pounds, whispering a tiny, "Oh _dear_."


	6. Part 1: One Day Stands

**Author's Note:** HEY, wat's up? long time no write, eh? as i have said in previous chapters, i'm DESPERATELY sorry it took so long for me to update…first i got sick, then i had a week of standardized tests at school, and i have JUST finished final exams…but enough excuses. there's good news for me to share: IT IS NOW SUMMER! that's good for me, cuz it means no school, but also good for you if you're enjoying my story—more free time for ME more chapters in a smaller time span for YOU GUYZ. i will be gone on vacation for a while at times, but that's the beauty of laptops; mine goes where _i_ go! o.O so yeah, i'll stop rambling on now, and let you get to the next chapter. you're personal responses to reviews are, as usual, below… .

**DragonGirl: **AIYYY! don't cry! i swear it gets better! well, at least a little…(smirks) i'm glad you liked it! and sorry you had to wait!

**cameron: **you're assumptions are may be right…but i'm not gonna tell you anymore than that! And for you and everyone else that might be a little worried: at the beginning i said this was a BBRae story, and it will remain that way, _except_ for a couple twists and turns. (snickers) i love leading you guys on…

**BolenPUCR: **i would say i'm glad you feel sorry, cuz that's the reaction that i wanted from people, but it sounds wrong, if you catch my drift. o.O i'm weird…

**Smileyfacedudet: **you don't have to review me every chapter, i know you usually read them…i _force_ you to at home…

**TDG3RD:** thanx for all the helpful hints and ideas, man, you really helped me out with the future of this fanfic. hope you have some more ideas again soon!

**moonarcher: **uhhh, you knda left out the website address in your review…if you read this again, though, could you please put it in another review? i'd really appreciate it!

**dragoon-bane: **SOMEBODY didn't read the origin story! Steve Dayton is Beast Boy's foster father, i explain their whole relationship and stuff in the first chapter, if you want to refresh your memory…

**AGAIN, I'M TERRIBLY SORRY IT TOOK ME SO LONG TO UPDATE!

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**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

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The morning at the Titan Tower was absolutely beautiful, with fluffy, pillow-like white clouds drifting slowly across the sun, giving temporary shade against the already rising temperatures. Sunlight bounced off the bay and glass windows of the Tower, making the building a huge prism. Birds flitted through the sky, bugs beginning their hot weather drone. It would've been an excellent day for the water park or the pool, even though it was only mid-March. Thoughts inside the Titan Tower were far from any swimming at all, however. The day of Beast Boy's departure had finally arrived, and it wasn't Beast Boy alone who had been dreading it.

The air inside the Tower was still as a lone shadow crept along the deserted hallways, holding a box and obviously searching for someone or something as it peered around corners, making its way towards the main room and kitchen in the tower. Every time the quiet _swish_ of a door or the faint echoes of someone else coming down the hall sounded, the shadow would swiftly dart for cover, shooting through halls or flattening itself against the wall. It was careful never to let the box fall from its secure grasp, carrying it with purpose and meaning.

Finally the shadow made it to the doorway of the main room, the couch and humungous windows filling the opposite side in its view. Suddenly it stopped before it took a step into the room, aware of the figure sitting on the corner of the long, green couch, gazing at the book held aloft with black energy. The shadow observed the Goth girl and her book for a moment, then glided up to her until it was directly behind her. It slowly lifted the box above the girl's head…

And dropped heavily it on the couch beside her.

Raven, sighed, letting the floating book drop into her outstretched hand as she turned to face the box. "Hello, Starfire."

"Hello, friend!" Starfire exclaimed with a smile, settling herself on the other side of the box. "The preparations have been made, and the boxed gift is ready." She happily patted the box, which was wrapped, rather messily Raven noted, in white wrapping paper with party-balloon print covering it. A decorative, red and yellow gift bow was stuck in the center, and a slip of paper was taped next to the bow.

"Great," Raven said, much less enthusiastic than Starfire. Starfire didn't seem to notice, however, and looked toward Raven with eager eyes.

"Do you think he has guessed our surprise of the going away?"

Raven resisted rolling her eyes at Starfire's novice English, and tucked her book under her arm as she stood up. Remembering the slightly hurt look that had passed over Beast Boy's face when she had told him she was going to the mall with Starfire at the end of their last discussion, Raven shook her head. "No, I don't think he has."

"Joyous! Do you think he will like the boxed gift?"

The questions never seemed to stop with Starfire. "Yes, Starfire, I'm sure he'll appreciate it."

The idea of getting Beast Boy a gift before he left was Starfire's idea, so of course she was anxious about it. She had come to Raven a day or so after hearing of Beast Boy's…'resignation,' to put it nicely…and asked for the Goth's help in picking the gift out. Raven hadn't been much intrigued by the thought at first, but humored Starfire, and had been quite surprised when the ever-cheerful teen had pulled out at least two thousand dollars in cash to count for spending money. Apparently, Starfire didn't seem to have much trust in banks—with good reason, too, seeing as most of the time the Teen Titans were stopping some form of robbery, usually from a bank.

Raven glanced at the digital clock over on the kitchen oven. It was almost eleven, and Beast Boy was due to leave at eleven thirty or so. The only Titan Raven had really seen this morning was Starfire, and she suspected the rest were either in their rooms or on the roof, where the helicopter would land. She didn't know where Starfire was planning to go, or anyone else, but Raven had decided last night after a restless hour or two in bed that she would see Beast Boy off.

She started to walk across to the door that led to the rest of the Tower, Starfire getting up and picking up the box once again to follow her. "I'm going up to the roof," she told Starfire as she came up behind her.

She waited for Starfire to leave and go to her own doings, but Starfire simply beamed. "Good, I will accompany you." Starfire wasn't much of one for hints, Raven had learned, so she didn't pursue the matter. Instead, she walked out the door, Starfire in tow.

* * *

"The pilot says we're about twenty-five minutes away, now." Steve's voice sounded hollow and brash in Beast Boy's ear as he held the cell phone to his ear, dragging his suitcase to his door. Its weight had grown increasingly heavy as Beast Boy had tried to fit everything he could of his old life into it and the two boxes Cyborg had already lugged up to the storage room below the roof. The room was completely blank, all trash finally gone and furniture besides the bed buried in the depths of the Tower's basement. Beast Boy tried hard not to look at one place in the room too long anymore, images of what stuff should be there instead of the vacant spot popping into his mind if he did.

"You might want to go on to the roof if you aren't already up there," Steve continued. His voice was strained, as he was practically yelling over the roar of helicopter blades and engine. "We're going to land on the roof and stay there, the co-pilot will help you with your stuff, but the goal is to get off the Tower as soon as possible. Don't want anyone wondering what's going on."

Beast Boy sighed heavily in distress. "Oh, yeah, we wouldn't want that," he said flatly. He didn't want to sound like a brat to Steve, but he had become increasingly irritated and angry the closer the time for him to leave the Tower came. Words of sarcasm and resentment seemed to leak out of him exactly when he didn't want them to, as if his mouth belonged to an entirely different person and he couldn't control what he said at all. He felt guilty about it, too. There had been only one other time in his life when he had become as pessimistic and offensive as he was being currently, and that had been when he had been 'rescued' from the jungle after his parents' death.

Steve knew this too, and understood the behavior better than Beast Boy could himself—just the kid's way of dealing with strong feelings. Some people went off the wire and sought physical damage, while others sat by quietly but lashed out with words. So Steve had learned not to take it personally. "Hey," he said seriously now, though he was still pretty much shouting. "Don't worry. You'll get through this."

Beast Boy didn't speak for a minute, then, "I sure hope so."

"I've got the apartment all cleaned and ready to go." Steve changed the subject, and Beast Boy knew that was the signal of 'we'll talk about this later face-to-face'. Beast Boy picked up his suitcase and started out the door, listening to Steve so he wouldn't concentrate on the fact he was leaving behind the room he had spent the past like, what, four years?…of his life in. The only things that now remained with him of those four years were his memory and the Titan communicator in the pocket of his shorts. "Your old room is a little dusty, but the furniture is still there. I went out and got most of the basic school supplies the list said you'd need. They sent a letter of supplies, can you believe that? I though you were going to high school, inform me if I'm wrong—"

_"What?"_ Beast Boy yelped, thoughts of _'Thank God the halls are empty_' gone from his head. "High school!"

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "You mean…you didn't know you were going back to school?"

"No!" Beast Boy practically screeched. He hurriedly lowered his voice to a slight yell. "That failed to be mentioned by only everyone!" Great, not only did he have to worry about becoming a 'helpless victim of the enemies of Teen Titans', but he also had to worry about becoming the helpless victim of school bullying again? And he thought he had escaped that horror when he was twelve. He dropped his suitcase next to the Tower's elevator and began taking his disgust out on the button by punching it angrily.

"Sorry, I didn't know that you didn't know…but the county can't just let fourteen- and fifteen-year-olds sit around doing nothing all day, even if they were once vigilantes. It's against the law."

Beast Boy groaned just as the elevator doors glided open. He climbed in, moving his suitcase to set beside the control pad. "Can't I just be home-schooled or something?"

"Sure, if you would rather stay at home being drilled about history questions alone with a sixty-year-old lady overdue for a fashion police arrest and an _Extreme Makeover: Smell Edition_ episode instead of having food in the fridge and friends to go to the movies and mall with."

"Okay, I'll live."

"_No_, I can't afford a private tutor and we'll talk about this later, the line is breaking up. See you in fifteen minutes."

"But—" the line went dead, leaving Beast Boy staring at his cell phone, perturbed. He flipped it shut and shoved it in his front pocket, watching the pieces of sunlight flash by through the railed window at the top of the shaft, the elevator rising quickly upwards to the roof. He stuck his hand in another of his pockets, feeling the comforting round shape of the Titan communicator with his fingers. He wasn't supposed to have it, but he couldn't quite let go yet.

The elevator suddenly started to slow down, giving Beast Boy a slight fluttering sensation as it came to a complete stop. He picked up his suitcase and stood ready as the bright yellow of the sun blinded him, shining through the large windows covering the walls of the huge, empty storage room he had emerged into. He climbed out of the shaft, letting his eyes adjust as the elevator closed and began to make its way back down again. A narrow, spiral metal staircase came up through the middle of the floor and led up to a trapdoor that led out to the roof of the Tower. Below was the gym, and the Titans passed through this room regularly to play volleyball, but none had really ever stopped to notice this room before. Now Beast Boy took the time, knowing with a sick feeling that this would be the last room inside the Tower he might ever see. It was a very desolate place, cobwebs in corners, packages of supplies, weapon back-ups, and any type of gear needed to clean up the inside or outside of the Titans headquarters stacked upon and among each other. There were no lamps or lights visible in the storage room, sunlight from the windows surrounding it on all four sides providing it with light during the day, and flashlights providing light during the night. The numerous boxes and crates cast long shadows on the floor, keeping the temperature bearable in the room most of the time.

"Beautiful scenery, right?"

Beast Boy jumped, swinging around to come face-to-face with Cyborg, grinning at Beast Boy's startle. Beast Boy grinned back for humor's sake, though he could really less feel like doing so. "Yeah, just a few more boxes over by the stairs and we're set."

"I do not believe it is as beautiful as you agree," came Starfire's confused, lilting voice. Beast Boy peered behind Cyborg's huge figure to see Starfire floating a few inches above the ground with a large, wrapped box in her arms. Raven was standing next to her, watching Robin, who was standing further off along the crates, talking into a walkie-talkie of some sort. Starfire continued. "But if that is the custom on this planet—"

"It was sarcasm, Starfire," Raven interrupted. She stole a quick glance at Beast Boy, then went back to watching Robin just as quickly. She hated goodbyes.

"Oh," Starfire said sheepishly, looking down at the box she held. Her face split it to a smile a second later, though, as if she was remembering something important. But before she could inform the rest of the group what she seemed so happy about, Robin sauntered, over with the walkie-talkie clutched in his fist. He came up beside Raven, gazing anywhere that wasn't at Beast Boy.

"Your ride will be here shortly," he said stiffly. He wasn't a good leader for nothing, and could tell Beast Boy still hadn't forgiven him yet as soon as Beast Boy's jaw locked and his eyes looked straight ahead, ignoring Robin's head. "About ten or nine minutes, according to the pilot."

"That's terrific." The words were bitter and biting, and Beast Boy immediately regretted saying them. He didn't want to have an episode in front of the team—it was unfair to them. He should've known Robin wouldn't care either way. He had always been the type to settle it when it needed settling.

"Look, Beast Boy, I know you're upset—"

"Yeah, I _know_ you do. But that's not helping anything." Why was he getting into this? He shouldn't, he should keep his cool…he noticed Cyborg was inching off towards Raven and Starfire, who were moving away from Robin. They could sense something was coming, even if the two who were going to be responsible couldn't.

"You've stayed in your room since the moment you knew about this. Maybe you're not letting it help!"

There it was: the accusation. The rest of Titans had gone totally silent, always aware of the dangerously climbing tension between Beast Boy and Robin, but now infatuated by it and unable to stop it. Beast Boy had the uncanny feeling everyone's eyes were on him, waiting for his response. Without warning, Beast Boy suddenly felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders, but not in entirely in a good way. Robin had just given him the bait, and Beast Boy had never been one to let opportunities pass. So predictably, he was the first to crack.

"Let it help? _Let_ it help? And how do I let your freaking pity help me when it's the _last_ thing in the world I _want_?" Out of the corner of his eye, Beast Boy caught Raven shaking her head. He didn't pay it any attention either, instead barreling ahead. He gestured around the room they were standing in. "You knew this was my life! _Is_ my life! You knew that ever since you first picked me up! You understood that too, don't say you didn't—but then you go and _take it away from me?_"

Robin flinched. "Beast Boy, we already—"

"I might've just been the comic relief for you guys, but I helped just as much as everyone else in _creating_ the Teen Titans! Sure, I'm not a brilliant techno-dude, or, or someone who can predict where the bad guys will strike next by stupid computer data, but I sure as _hell_ came through for this team too many times to count! You can't just throw me off! I have nothing to go to—"

"Beast Boy—"

"You know that! Why am I telling you this?" His voice was starting to rise, and to his horror, an itching wetness began to surface at the corners of his eyes. "You know what's it's like to have no life besides the one you're living now! You had no life right when you lost your parents, Robin, and I DIDN'T EITHER! I WAS CAGED, LOCKED UP LIKE A FREAK! _No one wanted me._ THIS GAVE ME SOMETHING WORTH LIVING FOR—"

"BEAST BOY, DON'T DO THIS TO ME!" Robin shouted, breaking into Beast Boy's ranting. "I _know_ how it feels to have to leave what you love, but you have to face it! _You'd do more bad on this team than good now!_"

The sentence was a harsh smack to Beast Boy, causing him to let his suitcase fall to the ground. His fists were clenched next to his sides so hard the whites of his knuckles stood out painfully clear. "_YOU_ don't do this to _ME_! And at least YOU had the comfort of making another life out of something you wanted! I'M ABOUT TO GO LIVE A NIGHTMARE OF A LIFE THAT I HATED THE FIRST TIME! You're telling me I have to be cut off from the—the only…the only friends I've ever really _had_, without a backward glance? And you're expecting me to take this all 'that's okay it's only my life'? And one of the few friends I thought I could depend on has to let me down like some_ type of_ _one-day stand,_ AVOIDING ME AND HIDING BEHIND A MASK BECAUSE YOU'RE TOO AFRAID TO LET ME KNOW YOU CARE!"

Now it was Robin's turn for shock to be etched in every inch of his face, stunned into silence and hurt. Beast Boy's quiet, ragged breaths were the only sounds that echoed in the vast storage room, and an overwhelming guilt replaced the weight Beast Boy had felt he had left behind only moments before. A distant, chopped roar broke into the room then, and everyone knew the helicopter had arrived. Cyborg walked over to Beast Boy's two boxes that were at the base of the spiral staircase and loaded them into his arms, stepped onto the staircase and climbed up to the roof without a word to Robin or Beast Boy, who were still standing across from each other. Starfire glanced at the two one last time, then followed Cyborg, the wrapped box in her hands. Raven did not follow, but instead stood watching Robin and Beast Boy as the helicopter's dull roar became ever louder.

Robin seemed to finally snap back to reality, and his face hardened in seconds to his normal, blank expression—the normal expression that he only wore when he didn't want his true emotions to be seen. He held out his hand to Beast Boy, but Beast Boy had the feeling it wasn't for a hand shake. He was right.

"Your Titan communicator, please," Robin said quietly, his voice firm and almost unfeeling. Beast Boy opened his mouth angrily to say he didn't know what Robin was talking about, but Robin stopped him. "I know you have it."

Beast Boy closed his mouth into a pale, thin line, and reached into his shorts pocket, pulling out the communicator gingerly. He held it in his hand for another second, and then quickly stretched out his arm and dropped it in Robin's outstretched hand as if it had turned red-hot. Robin nodded as Beast Boy bent down to pick up his suitcase, and waited until Beast Boy had straightened up to speak again. "You might want to hurry up before you miss your ride…Garfield." Robin swallowed once, turning away and walking extremely fast to the elevator. Beast Boy resisted the urge to run after him and strangle him, his face pale and very hot at the same time. No one had called him that in a very, very long time. Robin stood with his back to Raven and Beast Boy even when the elevator doors closed tightly behind him, refusing to look either in the eye.

Raven looked questioningly at Beast Boy as Robin disappeared, right when he promptly took off towards the staircase. He ignored her as she glided behind him while he climbed up the stairs, only facing her when he had burst out of the trapdoor, slamming it down after she and his suitcase were out. She stepped out in front of him before he could run to the helicopter, which had landed on the roof and was kicking up dust as well as a strong wind that tossed and flipped Raven's hair and cape. Starfire and Cyborg were waiting a few yards off, the boxes already in the helicopter's cargo space. The wrapped box that Starfire had had was mysteriously gone.

"Please," Raven said as loudly as she could, her voice barely audible over the helicopter's roar. She was pushing her purple-hued hair out of her face with difficultly, her cape blowing wildly, showing her pale skin and figure-hugging costume underneath it. The belt of blood-red jewels flashed in the sun. Her voice also had a strange pleading note, which helped make Beast Boy shift under her unfaltering gaze. "Beast Boy, don't…don't leave us angry."

Beast Boy looked up at her navy eyes, his anger somewhat fading away. He slumped his shoulders a tad over in defeat, tired and troubled by the argument he had just had with Robin. "I'm not angry," he stated simply, not caring whether Raven had heard him or not. He raised his voice against the helicopter's noise. "Raven—"

"HEY!" Raven and Beast Boy turned to the helicopter door to see a man of average height leaning out, waving his arms. His hair was cut short, ruffling in the wind; sunglasses covered his eyes, but his mouth was wide, hinting at a huge smile that came easily, and his ears stuck out from his head almost hilariously. He was wearing a suit, indicating he had just come from work of some sort. It was Beast Boy's foster father, Steve Dayton. "COME ON!"

Beast Boy looked at Raven again, who was waiting for him to continue. A wave of misery swept over Beast Boy as easily as the nausea had swept over him the day his life had changed for the worse. "Raven," he started again. She had to lean in to hear him properly. His voice cracked and faltered as he sullenly voiced his defeat. "I'm not…Beast Boy…any more."

She stared at his back as he brushed past her, running with an arm across his face towards Steve and his new life, suitcase flapping against his legs. He was glad the harsh wind from the helicopter's blades swept away the tears before they actually touched his face. For the truth had finally hit him, and it had winded him just as he had been winded when he found out there was no reversing he matter of his 'condition'. As he had told Raven, he wasn't Beast Boy any more…he was once again Garfield Logan.

And he once again felt very alone.


	7. Flashback 1

**Author's Note: **hey, guys, i kno this chapter might desperately confuzzle—look at the chapter title to get a bit of a clue—some of you, but bare with me! i'm goin on vacation for the rest of this week, so i figured this'll at least keep you guys a little busy...i'll reply to your reviews for the previous chapter in the next one, as well as any for this one. hope you guys stay kool, and hopefully you'll have an update from me next week sometime. until then, TOODLES!

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**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

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**

_The bell pierced the lazy, sun-filled afternoon, waking daydreaming students of Jefferson High School out of reveries, stopping teachers in mid-sentence explanations of grammar rules or chemical reactions, and causing a dark-headed girl wearing huge goggles that made her look bug-eyed and an oversized white lab coat to inelegantly drop the beaker she was holding delicately between three fingers with a horrifying crash. As the glass shattered on the tiled floor and the beaker's bronze-colored contents splattered all over the cabinets and backpacks around it, everyone in the chemistry classroom turned and glared at her with an exasperated air, hinting that this wasn't the first or last time beakers had and would have to be replaced. A squat, bald man pushing coke-bottle glasses up on his bulbous, rosy nose, let out a particularly infuriated groan while the rest of the class scrambled to gather their papers and turn off their Bunsen burners. The girl blushed furiously, her face and neck turning hot as her lab partner, a rather tall and well-built boy who she had had a desperate crush on since the seventh grade, snickered quietly._

_"Melina!" the bald man exclaimed frustratingly at the girl. She flushed an even darker color of beet-red, if that was possible. Her lab partner wasn't even bothering to hide his amusement now, openly laughing now. "That was iodine! Should I remind you of its staining properties?" _

_"I'm sorry, Professor Zacht!" Melina wailed, bending down to start cleaning up the liquid that was slowly seeping into the white tiles._

_"You're sorry every other day for dropping a different chemical!" Zacht rolled his eyes, then turned to glare at Melina's lab partner, whose shoulders were still shaking. "And if you find this humorous, Mr. Logan, you can help your partner clean up the mess she so graciously made…" Zacht began collecting safety goggles from students as the filed past his desk, Melina's lab partner shrugging, unable to form words in his mouth._

_Soon enough the shards of glass and most of the iodine was up off the floor, though a mild yellow stain remained etched into the tile. Most students and even Professor Zacht had left already, and the campus's air conditioning had been shut off to preserve energy, making Melina grateful for the gray tank top she was wearing. She was presently folding her lab coat dutifully, all her books and papers stacked and ready to go as soon as she was through. Then without warning, she convulsed violently, laughing but trying to look angry as she continued to be tickled_

_"Mark!" She shrieked, lab coat lying on the floor, forgotten, as she tried to fight her friend off. "Stop! You know I'm ticklish!"_

_"That's exactly why people tickle one another, you forget, to laugh at those who're ticklish." The tickling did halt, however, and an out-of-breath Melina turned to face an impishly grinning Mark._

_The two had known each other for almost all of their lives, sticking together even though they were 'as different as black and white', as Melina's mother liked to say. Melina was dark-skinned and dark-haired; with her raven-black hair and hazel eyes, her dad's nickname for her had been long ago determined as Pocah, short for Pocahontas. Stupidest idea on earth according to Melina, but she didn't get into it with her father. She was also slight of build, petite yet one of the strongest girls in her physical education class. The school's track team was always after her, but in vain—Melina was the reclusive, academic type. She was extremely shy around anyone of the same or opposite sex, doubly so for the latter. Her slim, curvy figure was usually hidden behind baggy jeans and jackets, or whole-piece bathing suits in the summer._

_Mark Logan, however, was the entirely reverse matter: he was an outgoing young man, his forest-green eyes full of mirth and his messy, short-cropped brunette hair reflecting his slapdash attitude, plus his odd way of thinking. He wasn't ever shy around anyone, and could most likely have had any girl in the high school he wanted, if it wasn't for his frustrating genius and lack of any interest whatsoever in romance. Mark had always been the type of guy who'd rather be discussing the end of the world by nuclear war in a humorous and tilting way than letting a girl have mood swings on his shoulder. Maybe it was the fact that Melina wasn't the type of girl to have mood swings or the uncanny way they seemed to think the same way but in different manners, but she had had the feeling that she and Mark Logan had been made for each other, and their long-lasting friendship had done nothing to discourage her dreams. But Mark didn't seem to have any idea about Melina's feelings for him, and being the timid person she was, she let it be, not minding dreaming about the day he might ask her out instead of living it at all._

_Mark went over to gather his stuff as Melina picked up her lab coat and placed it where it belonged. Swinging his bag over his shoulder, he waited for Melina to get all of her things into her arms at the door. When she finally was ready to leave, he let her walk out the door first, then closed the door behind them._

_"So, you got a lot of homework to do tonight?" Mark asked casually. _

_Melina glanced back at him they walked towards their lockers, which were mysteriously next to each other. Melina was ready to accept it as a sign. "Not really. I finished my English paper last night, and that's really all that I actually have to turn into tomorrow." She sighed happily as they approached the line of lockers where theirs were. "Can you believe it?" she asked dreamily. "Only two more weeks to go, then we're graduating! Isn't it amazing?"_

_They came to their lockers, and Melina began wrestling with her lock. At no reply or sound of a turning lock from Mark, she peered over at him to find him gazing at her, an odd, longing look in his green eyes. Her heart thumped heavily against her chest. "Mark?" she asked softly, not wanting to interrupt his thoughts but wondering what those thoughts were at the same time._

_He shook his head, as if snapping out of a dream. "Huh?" he grunted unintelligently, causing Melina to let lose a little snort of laughter. He looked at her, confused, but she just grinned at the lost expression on his face._

_"I was talking about it being the end of the year. Only to more weeks and we're off to the wonderful world of late-night coffee meetings and neck-breaking work at __America__'s beloved universities."_

_Mark smiled at her, and then added something that made Melina's hear stop for at least five seconds. "Yep. And only four more days until our senior prom. Time flies."_

_Her mouth felt very dry as she shoved some textbooks into her locker. "Certainly does. Do you…er, do you have a date yet?"_

_There was an awkward silence, punctured only by the rustlings of Melina struggling with some of her papers while her face grew hot. She prayed to God she wasn't blushing too horrendously. Then a strong hand came out of nowhere, reaching across her face and helping her get the rest of her papers into the locker. Melina gulped as she felt Mark's warm body press against hers as he helped, her heart thudding faster than ever. He was much too close. But as suddenly as his presence had come over her, he backed off again like he had read her mind. She shut her locker, and turned to see him leaning against the row of lockers. He watched her as she leaned herself next to him, though a good distance away. _

_"Nah, not yet," he answered abruptly. Melina forced herself not to jump at the sound of his voice. "I don't even know if I'm going."_

_Melina did jump up at this, facing him anxiously. "Oh, you should definitely go! My mother says if you miss out on senior prom, you miss out on high school." Mark's eyes stayed on her, and she wished she hadn't been so quick to comment like that…_

_"How about you? Do you have a date?"_

_"Me?" Melina squeaked, and she knew she was blushing this time._

_"No, the janitor over there," Mark retorted sarcastically, pointing at a particularly old and decrepit janitor making her way across the other side of the hallway. He grinned again at Melina's discomfort and his own joke. "Of course you."_

_"Um, no, I don't," Melina replied shyly, trying to keep herself from blushing more._

_"You don't want to miss out on high school, though, do you?" Mark teased her. She smiled a little and shook her head, which made Mark's grin grow wider. _

_Suddenly the speakers placed systematically around the school cackled to life, the voice that sounded over the intercom bored and weary. "Students, the administrative reminds you that you must leave the building by __three forty-five__ this afternoon due to the health inspection of the school at __four thirty__." After a slight pause, the bored voice added, "That means you have fifteen minutes to get out."_

_The squeal that usually defined the end of an announcement sounded, causing both Melina and Mark to screw up their faces as it echoed throughout the whole campus. After the noise faded off, Mark immediately resumed their conversation, giving Melina hardly any time to process what he was saying by the time he had said it. "Listen, I was wondering, I want to go to the prom, but seeing as I don't have a date…well—"_

_Melina's heart stopped once again and soared, a beautiful, elated feeling filling her up as she assumed Mark was asking her to the prom…her, the science-geek who never wore make-up, as opposed to the beautiful cheerleader squad captain Gwen Smith, who had been all over him when he stepped through the doors of high school for the first time! She wasted no time in giving him her answer: "Absolutely, I'd love to!" she blurted breathlessly, beaming._

_"Really?" Mark questioned, eagerly. "So you've heard of the plans? Mel, you're the best, we never thought that a decent girl would want to go with a bunch of guys—"_

_The smile slowly faded from Melina's face. "Guys?" She felt and sounded faint. "Which guys?"_

_"Oh, then you must've not heard about who's going," Mark suggested excitedly, obviously missing the put-off expression Melina had swiftly adopted. "It's me, Nick Carter, Cody Rilestone, Michael Hudson, Ryan Delver, you know, all the guys that we hang out with sometimes at lunch. We're too…cowardly, I guess, to ask anybody out, you know, and so we'd figure we'd just go as a bachelor group, but now we think that'd look strange, a whole bunch of guys going to the prom together, so if we have a couple girls…you could ask around, see if any girls you know want to come…hey, Mel, you okay? You look kind of pale…"_

_The walls had begun closing in on Melina the moment Mark had started babbling, her breathing becoming shallow and sweat popping out on her palms. She felt ashamed and embarrassed for even considering that Mark would ask her out; it had been, was, and would be only a fantasy. Nodding her head, she looked up Mark, who was looking back at her with a hint of concern in those…gorgeous, green eyes…well, at least he had called her a decent girl._

_Mark smiled again. "Great. Do you need a ride home? If we don't get going, I'm pretty sure they'll kick us outta here…no, you sure? Okay, then, see you tomorrow!"_

_Melina watched him as he jogged off, an empty feeling replacing the blissful one she had had minutes before. As she turned to go the opposite way down the hall so she could walk home, she pondered on whether or not it could be her hair that put boys off…she'd read somewhere guys loved blondes, or even redheads. She heaved a sigh. Maybe she'd just dye, and her problems would leave her… _


	8. Part 2: New Beginnings

**Author's Note:** you kno, i should just stop making promises—maybe that would be the way to go. i'm sorry i didn't update when i said i would, but two certain little COUSINS got in the way...AIY, the trials of babysitting! lol, jk. now that i've made my excuses, onto the important announcements. one: for all of you who might wonder for some odd, vague reason, _yes_ Garfield Logan is Beast Boy, and for most of the remainder of this fanfic he will be called Gar, his nickname used by friends and family. two: there will be flashbacks like the previous chapter every once and a while, cuz it links directly into the plot, so be prepared if one pops up; i'll warn you, though, so you won't be totally confused for the first few minutes of the chapter. three: i will still write about the Titans without a Beast Boy, don't worry, cuz it links into the plot, and because a certain goth chick is still living at the Tower…heh. four: my story is divided into three parts—this is the beginning of the second part, with Gar struggling to live a normal life when he wants to do anything but. if you look and the chapter titles, you will be able to tell what part you're reading. five: this chapter was really long at first, so i decided to break it down; think of it as a catch-up chapter, since it's actually really short compared to my others. i kno my chapters usually have a space of time between each other, but the next chapter happens about thirty minutes after this one. and now, last but not least, six: thank you ALL for sticking with me this far, each and every one of your reviews are gratefully appreciated. and since they are, here are your personal responses—i started with chapter six first, then did chapter seven…

**dragoon-bane:** yeah, it was a sad chap…but i had so much _fun_ writing it! ugh, i'm terrible, right?

**iamhollywood:** aww, thanx! and ur hopes have been answered! i plan to take this story to the end, if i can, so stay tuned for more…

**TDG3RD:** Robin's not _that_ bad, i just made him out to be a jerk because the story needed one…gawd, i _am_ terrible…

**rougeandkurt: **why, thank you! i luv it when ppl tell me that (the 'this story rules' part)…it keeps me going! and trust me, that's sometimes hard to do…

**DragonGirl: **AIY! i'm sorry Robin, i turned them all against you! … heh, keep him one piece for me, alrighty? he still has some important parts in the story. like ur emotion, though!

**BolenPUCR: **intense was what i was going for…but, _finally_, someone who has something besides death wishes for Robin…lol, jk!

**moonarcher: **WOOHOO! got ur website this time! and guess what? you get to find out how the Titans do go along…or don't…without a Beast Boy. snickersnicker

**TDG3RD: **don't be too sure about not being right…you guys have a knack for guessing plotlines…

**BolenPUCR: **O.o … no comment

**fernnu: **HA! and somebody says it! yeah, both are being jerks, and they'll get set straight soon enough…thanx for the compliments XD

**Storm666:** like a told you, it all plays into the plot…(evil grin)

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**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

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Bright morning sunlight streamed into Gar's bedroom, causing him to squint painfully as he eased his forest-green eyes open at the sharp, piercing call of a bluebird that had decided to make its nest right above the only window in the room. Gar carefully pushed himself up onto his elbows, fighting morning lethargy and forcing himself to abandon the warmth of his twin bed as he swung his legs over the side. Sitting on the edge of the bed, Gar blearily watched as the deep red numbers of his digital clock clicked in place to read eight o'clock. Swiftly Gar brought a fist slamming down on the top of the clock, letting only one flat _BLEEP_ escape before the alarm fell silent. Gar leaned back, resting against the cool, smooth paint of the wall as his body switched out of sleep mode. Then, just as suddenly as he had awakened, Gar jumped off the bed, stretching and yawning, to walk in his boxers towards the door on the wall next to his bed.

His room was definitely a change from the voluminous one he had had in the Tower, but its closeness gave him a sense of security he welcomed with open arms. The room was probably just ten by eight feet, but had enough room for his bed, which sat along the foremost wall, a small nightstand that was next to the bed, a bookcase that was opposite the end of his bed, and a small desk next to the bookcase. There were two doors in his room; the one across from his bed, which led to the rest of Steve's three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment, and one beside his nightstand, which led to one of the two bathrooms. "I thought you would like this room," Steve had said when first giving Gar the tour of their new and hopefully permanent home, "because, of course, you have your own necessary room, but also I thought you would enjoy the view." There was one window in the little room, right beside the twin bed, which looked out on the rest of downtown Jump City from six stories up, and allowed a glimpse of the bay, with the Titans Tower gleaming on the horizon. Steve had been quite right—Gar had taken on the habit of gazing out to the bay every night before he climbed in bed.

After using his 'own necessary room', Gar went over to his desk still yawning, to fish through the suitcase lying on the desk for a presentable outfit to wear. The two boxes he had brought with him from the Tower were stacked beside the bookcase, unopened, and Gar's suitcase probably would have remained unopened as well if Steve hadn't scolded Gar out of a depressed mood that had dominated him and most of the apartment for three days after his arrival. But finally Steve had violated Gar's privacy by bursting in the room one morning, threatening to pick out Gar's clothes, bathe, dress, and force-feed him if he didn't get back to life at that instant. Gar obeyed, knowing from experience Steve was one to follow through on his threats. So now, against every single one of his wishes, Gar was getting ready for his first day of tenth grade and his first official day of high school.

After pulling on T-shirt advertising a hamburger joint and a flannel shirt over it, along with a pair of cargo shorts, and taking at least five minutes to search for a matching pair of socks, Gar grabbed the backpack he and Steve had managed to buy yesterday, shoving all the school supplies he and Steve had hunted down for almost a week into it. He slung the backpack over his shoulder, walked to the door that led to out of his room, then glanced back at the room with the weird feeling that someone was watching him. He shrugged it off, however, and shut the door behind him as he made his way down the short hall that led to the apartment's kitchen, debating whether his squeamish stomach could hold cereal or Pop-tarts better.

But as soon as he stepped through the doorway of the hall into the kitchen, Gar was hit full in the face by the scent of freshly-baked pancakes and eggs, maple syrup mingling in with it all. Steve was humming cheerfully by the stove, spatula in hand and looking slightly ridiculous, as he was dressed in neatly pressed pants and a wrinkle-free shirt, tie hanging around his neck, with apple-printed oven mitts covering his hands. Two places were set at the wooden table centered in the middle of the kitchen, pancakes stacked and orange-juice poured, waiting to be devoured. Gar put his backpack on the counter outcrop that overlapped the living room, and went over to the table, his presence still unnoticed by Steve. He had put the orange-juice carton in the fridge and was just getting out some forks when Steve turned from the oven, a pan of muffins balanced on his oven mitts.

"Hey! You're up, I see," Steve exclaimed as Gar snatched a muffin from the pan, dropping it on one of the plates as he sat down, placing a fork next to the other plate. Steve placed the rest of the muffins in a jar on the counter, switching off the oven and stove before taking off his oven mitts.

"Yeah," Gar shrugged as Steve sat down next to him. "What's with the feast?"

"I figured a good breakfast to start off a good day." Steve paused, then picked up his fork and added, "The eggs were about to go bad, too." Gar, who had been about to empty a huge spoonful of the scrambled eggs on his plate, changed tack and went for his muffin instead. Steve didn't pay any attention, instead carrying on conversation between bites.

"I'm guessing you'll need a ride to school; I don't have any idea where the buses pick up around here," Steve said, spreading some syrup on his pancakes. "I'm afraid I won't be able to drag you to the entrance, I have a huge meeting at the office around nine. You'll just have the pleasure of introducing yourself to the Jump City High." He gave a sidelong glance at Gar. "Now this part is important," he continued, retrieving a piece of yellow paper from the counter and putting it in front of Gar's plate. Gar looked down at it through his orange juice. "The front office is right by the main doors. Has a huge sign that says 'Front Office,' you can't miss it. There, you give this paper to the sophomore counselor, Mrs. Rovanshuk, and she'll give you your schedule and such. Now get this story straight: you're a fifteen-year-old previous student of Azhweit's Academy of Learning, a boarding school in Maine for boys only. You came here to live with your foster father," Steve pointed at himself, "and decided you'd go on and finish the school year at Jump City High, even though you've already taken final exams and passed all of them successfully. Got it?"

At this point, Gar had stopped chewing to absorb all that he was being told. After a quick pause, he nodded and swallowed his muffin. "No finals? Sweet, that's one good thing coming my way…And don't worry, I got it," he assured at a stern look from Steve. "But why a boys only school? That makes me sound like I had no life."

Steve shrugged, sitting down again. "I didn't come up with this stuff. Though it'd be an interesting job, I've always wanted to work with the Witness Protection program, you know…You haven't touched your pancakes yet! I swear the batter was fine. Now hurry up, we have fifteen minutes to get out to the car and fight morning traffic to your school." Gar brooded glumly for a moment, then finally started on his pancakes, a loud rumble from his stomach winning over his nausea and resentment.

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Unnoticed by Gar Logan or Steve Dayton, the apartment complex surveillance cameras zoomed in on them as they practically flew down the stairs and out to the parking lot, training on their two figures and even Steve's car until it receded into the incoherent city-morning blur of noise and color. The cameras especially focused on Gar, letting Melina Ragonu get perfect images of his lightly freckled face, slightly creased brow, his shock of red hair, and his limber movements as he ran down flights of stairs, his muscles pumping. "A natural athlete, that one," Melina Ragonu whispered harshly to know one in particular. "All the better…but that _hair_…that will have to go."

Her tool sat on a stool in the corner of the lab, waiting patiently and never questioningly to do her bidding, its black attire blending into the shadows. It knew it would be needed soon. This was how it normally was. Its master sat at the wall, plotting and scheming for hours, just staring at the moving images sometimes; IDR56 would wait in its corner, almost forgotten. Then its master would suddenly come to life, getting up and hustling around the lair with a devilish mood, preparing and barking orders to be carried out by IDR56. After that came the fun, when IDR56 executed its missions, always satisfying and amusing to it—so for now, IDR56 was content to wait, knowing it would soon be rewarded with its mission.

The screens in front of Melina Ragonu then unexpectedly changed to completely different angles and pictures, causing IDR56 to straighten itself a little more on its stool, aware of the change. A savage hope and glee flashed through its mind at the idea of its mission on the horizon. The new pictures were of a dark warehouse, crates piled high in parallel rows throughout the monstrous structure, cobwebs hanging in front of the surveillance cameras Melina Ragonu was using and covering the views in a haze around the edges. Melina Ragonu's dark eyes sifted through the images before her, and IDR56 could tell she was searching for something. It kept deathly silent, lest noise should distract its master.

But Melina Ragonu's forehead wrinkled in anger and frustration as whatever she searched for eluded her. "_Dammit_, come out you bastard," she spat in a low voice. "I know where you're hiding, don't think you can escape me you sniveling—"

As if in response to her words, one of the images suddenly went blank, leaving a black pit of darkness where a picture had been moments before. Melina Ragonu stared at it for a second, starting as a second image went out in the same fashion. "What—what's going on?" IDR56 leaned forward on its stool as more images went out, perturbed and interested at the same time. Nothing like this had ever happened before. And its master didn't like anything out of her ordinary…

"You BASTARD," she suddenly shrieked at the computers, furiously punching at the control panel of her computers. "You wait—"

A hushed, drawling deep voice filled the laboratory, cutting Melina Ragonu off. "Little girlie," it crooned in a bored voice, "don't you come around me. Because I know little girlie wants candy, and I'm the only one that has little girlie's money." Melina Ragonu's eye twitched, and the voice changed tone, its words indifferent but threatening. "We have a deal, Ragonu; you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. But that deal goes only so far…you know when and where. Keep true, I'd quite hate to dispose of a promising ally…"

The voice faded, and the images came back, but of a busy parking lot right outside a sports utility store. Melina Ragonu frowned at the wall, a dangerous light in her eyes. She then began muttering rapidly to herself, falling back into her schemes and plots once more. IDR56 settled back against the wall and assumed its waiting for its mission, the odd message gone from its mind as abruptly as the message had ended. Its master was the one to handle the backwater dangers.


	9. Part 2: New Friends

**Author's Note:** WHEW! i just finished that chapter in record time! because of that, i apologize in advance for any typos…there might be more than enough, since i'm not planning on proofreading this chapter—not that i really proofread any of my other chapters. anyways, i hope you guys enjoy this chapter as much as you have enjoyed the others! it's entirely about Gar and him finding his new closest friends, so bear with me if you're anxious for more of the Titans; i PROMISE the next chapter is about the Titans and how they're doing without a Beast Boy. but two of the characters i introduce in this chapter play important parts in later chapters, and a few others play other parts, so don't dismiss their names totally from your mind. now, let's get some stuff clear for those of you who might read and worry: this is a bbrae fanfic, NOT really anything else; Mark Logan is Gar's father, Steve Dayton is his foster father; the whole Gar-got-bitten-by-a-green-monkey-and-got-his-powers did not happen—read my origin tweak, Chapter One, for clarification on that; and this fanfic DOES have a plot, i guarantee it! okay, on to your personal responses…

**TGD3RD:** dastardly? heh, let me tell you...lol, jk. you wanna kno who Ragonu's working with? i'll give you a hint: Titan fans kno his face too well...

**iamhollywood: **turn for the worst? you could say that. but i guarantee things _will_ get interesting the more you read...at least that's my goal! XD

**BolenPUCR: **i _luv_ twisted plotlines! they're so much fun to come up with, and they keep everyone guessing...

**moonarcher: **glad to be back! if you read the author's note, you'll see what the next chapter is about, and i think you'll like it. but hey, do me a favor? tell me if Gar seems too much out of character compared to Beast Boy, it'd be really helpful!

**rogueandkurt: **i'm glad it's at least more thrilling to you! yeah, i kno school sux, and i'm SO glad it's out! you keep smiling, too! .

**rikagirl: **i'm on ur favorites? aw, you just made my day! EEP!

**dragoon-bane: **yeah, wouldn't the world be a happier place if all finals were like that? ... SIGH. oh well...

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

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Gar stood outside Jump City High School, staring at its bright red brick walls and the spotless, shining glass doors that lined the front entrance. Students were reluctantly mulling around the doors, some sauntering inside, a few dashing out to make last-minute runs to their cars parked in either one of the two parking lots bordering the school. Teachers pushed their way through the crowds of students, coffee in hand, making their way as fast as they could to their classrooms to cover time lost in traffic. It was all an impressive sight to Gar, and he had to be snapped back to reality by Steve clearing his throat awkwardly, as Gar was still only half out of the vehicle, frozen in mid-step.

"Remember the slip," Steve chided as Gar completed his action, grabbing his backpack from the backseat as well. "I'll pick you up at three, right here." Gar nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Steve watched him for a second longer, then flashed a quick smile. "Don't worry, you'll do fine. Now go make some friends so I'm not the one who has to listen to you all the time."

Gar tried to throw him a mock offended look, but couldn't pull it off. Instead he shut the car door, gave Steve a quick wave, and started walking to the glass doors once Steve pulled off. There had only been two occasions on which he could remember feeling this nervous: when he finally left Africa for the United States, and the day he acquired Teen Titans membership. A group of students burst into laughter as he passed by them, resulting in several dark glances their way and a severely startled Gar as he barely missed smacking into someone. Pushing open one of the glass doors, he grimly thought, _And__ this is only high school. _

As soon as Gar stepped inside, the whole atmosphere seemed to change. Instead of the sleepy, halfhearted tone outside, the air instantly felt more alive with students running down the hallways followed by the voices of distressed teachers, shouting and laughing fits jumping around the walls, and the constant buzz of conversation. In the front lobby, trophy cases full of trophies, medals, plaques, and banners lined the white walls, while rows of blue lockers started when the lobby split off to three different hallways. Students filled almost every inch of tiled floor that could be seen in the halls, a shoving mass of bodies.

Pulling his eyes away from the students, Gar glanced about the lobby, hunting for the front office sign. Sure enough, just as Steve had promised, he immediately spotted the black block letters on the sign hanging directly over another glass door. Taking the yellow piece of paper Steve had given him at breakfast, he hastily walked over to the door and entered the office. At his entrance, a blonde-headed girl who looked to be around the same age as him raised her head from a pile of papers she had probably been organizing. The inside of the office made Gar feel as if he was in a dentist's waiting room; it had that strangely clean smell, pictures of flowers and lake views hanging on the walls. A bouquet of white lilies was perched on the counter that ran the whole length of the room, with various clipboards and pens laying on its surface. Behind the counter two desks sat against the far wall, and a small hallway between the desks led to what Gar believed were more offices. A middle-aged, pompous lady with coke-bottle glasses and brown hair was sitting at one of the desks and typing furiously behind the computer in front of her, most of her face hidden by the monitor. A gold-plated plaque that read 'MS. COMOURNER' sat beside the computer. An identical plaque that read 'MRS. ZATIECH' sat on the other desk, but Mrs. Zatiech was no where in sight. The faint ringing of a telephone from somewhere down the small hallway echoed over Ms. Comourner's typing.

"Hey! Can I help you?" A cheerful, ditzy voice broke into Gar's observations. He looked at the blonde girl at the counter, whose face was split in half by a huge grin. Gar gave a timid smile back, going up to the counter.

"Hi," he greeted, holding out the yellow paper. "I'm supposed to give this to—a Mrs. Rovanshuk, I think."

The girl took the piece of paper and scanned it with her sky-blue eyes, her grin replaced by a curious, polite smile instead. "Ooooh, you must be the new student—Garfield?" she said, placing the paper on the counter and looking up at him with yet another but also strangely disturbing smile. She held out her hand, giggling. "I'm Nicole Jackson."

Gar shook her hand. "Just call me Gar," he corrected.

The girl's—Nicole's—smile widened again. "I'm assuming you're a sophomore, since you're seeing Mrs. Rovanshuk? She's the tenth grade counselor." At Gar's nod, she picked up the sheet again and motioned playfully for Gar to come on back through a waist-high swinging door. "I'm in tenth grade too; maybe we'll have some classes together! If not, still feel free to come to _me_ if you need any help." She led him down the small hallway and stopped outside an office in which an older, white-haired lady dressed in a smart, navy-blue skirt and suit jacket, was yapping loudly on the phone. She gave the piece of paper back to Gar, and waved at the lady to get her attention. The lady nodded, and waved back. "She'll be with you in a moment," Nicole said to Gar, and left him waiting outside the office after a small wink and giggle. Gar turned towards Mrs. Rovanshuk's office, grossly reminded of the famous Barbie doll.

"Just get it done," Mrs. Rovanshuk snapped into the phone, slamming it down on the receiver. Mrs. Rovanshuk rose from her desk, giving Gar a very wide but very fake smile. "Ah, Mr. Logan!" she said, Gar walking into her office. "Sit down, sit down!" He handed her the yellow paper, then sat down in a comfortable, burgundy arm chair. She sat back down at her desk, looking at the paper through an oval pair of reading glasses.

"Welcome to Jump City High School," she said, placing the paper down on her desk and picking up a plain white piece of paper. "I'm glad you decided to join us this early, and that you managed to correctly fill out the registration form." She gestured towards the yellow slip. "Most new students are rarely able to do either." She gave a short bark of laughter, and Gar decided he didn't particularly care for Mrs. Rovanshuk. He just gave a tight smile.

"Here's your schedule," Mrs. Rovanshuk continued, handing him the white slip of paper. Gar glanced down at it. "All your classes, your teachers, and their classroom numbers are on that piece of paper," Mrs. Rovanshuk said. "Do not lose it, because right now our school computer server is down, so it's impossible to get you another copy; it's also impossible to get you a map of the school. You'll just have to ask for directions. For starters, the three halls from the lobby? Left is the one hundred hall, right is the three hundred hall—dratted administrators!" The phone had started ringing again. "The center is the two hundred hall. You'll get your locker tomorrow," she finished in a rush. "Let yourself out at the end of this hall, and good luck!" She picked up the phone and promptly switched to ignoring Gar.

Ambling out of the front office, Gar examined his schedule; his first class was British Literature Composition with Mr. Jay Carson, room one hundred and twelve. Sighing, he remembered Mrs. Rovanshuk's words and turned down the left hall. The number of students moving around in the hall had lessened considerably, now most standing in circles around lockers or outside of classrooms. Gar kept glancing at the numbers engraved above the classroom doors as he passed, until he found the one he was looking for within a couple of minutes. Standing outside a room with an ominous feeling looming in his stomach once again, Gar listened to the voices of many students in the room before forcing himself to take the needed steps that would bring him to the doorway.

The classroom was very ordinary, with the regular school desks sitting in rows in the middle of the classroom, students and backpacks occupying the desks. A chalkboard and white board hung beside each other on the wall next to Gar, a desk like the two in the front office sitting before them. A tall man sat at the desk, writing on a pad of paper. His half-bald head shone in the fluorescent light shining from the ceiling, pressed pants, shirt, and smartly secured bowtie around his neck gave Gar the impression of a good-natured old-timer. Gar stepped into the room and started for the desk.

Many of the students didn't notice him at all, and kept talking to each other animatedly, but a few stopped and watched him cross the room. Gar kept his eyes trained on Mr. Carson, though, not bothering to acknowledge the couple of whispers he heard. When he reached the desk, he asked quietly, "Mr. Carson?"

The man did not look up for a minute, slowly lifting his head only when Gar was about to call his name again. He gave Gar a puzzled stare for another minute, but his expression then swiftly changed to the triumphant look of someone who had just remembered what they had forgotten. In a deep, bass voice he exclaimed, "Garfield Logan, I presume?"

Gar nodded, and Mr. Carson stood up, reaching out for Gar's schedule. He let Mr. Carson take it, watching as he signed his initials next to his name. He handed back the schedule, saying, "I don't know if Mrs. Rovanshuk told you, but you're supposed to let all your teachers initial your schedule then give it back to the front office the next day. Besides that, welcome!" Then he leaned in closer and whispered, though very loudly, "For some advice from a teacher, stay away from the chicken lasagna at this school. You don't want gallbladder attacks at your age."

Gar smiled, liking Mr. Carson more with every word he spoke. "So," Mr. Carson said, scanning the classroom, "how about—ah, there we go! Take a sit next to Ms. Malvern, if you please…but wait! You haven't had the school tour yet, have you? Good, good…Ms. Malvern! _Ms. Malvern!_ She has those blasted headphones on again, doesn't she? Wait a moment, Garfield." Mr. Carson sauntered over the row of desks closest to the left wall. Only three or four students occupied this row; two boys were avidly debating over something, jabbing their fingers into each other's faces, with a third boy hanging on to every word they said, eagerly agreeing with both sides of the argument as he nodded when the other two boys appealed to him. They were all gathered around one desk, and behind them Gar could make out the figure of someone hunched over their desk, head in the arms. Mr. Carson tapped one of the boys' shoulders and pointed towards the figure. All three of the boys leapt upon the figure, aggressively tickling his or her sides, until they sat straight up and started slapping the boys' hands. The boys broke into laughter, and made way for their fellow student, still shaking with laughter. Mr. Carson strolled back over to Gar, his mouth spreading into a smile, followed by a disgruntled looking girl rubbing her eyes.

"Garfield, let me introduce you to Kassie Malvern, who is extremely excited and overjoyed to help out a new student who knows nothing about the vicious cycle of social discrimination at Jump City High School or how to navigate the school's halls," Mr. Carson proclaimed in a broadcast voice, bringing the girl face to face with Garfield. She was about the same height as Gar, with almost waist-length red-orange hair tied back in slapdash manner at the nape of her neck. A pair of oval glasses sat on the edge of her freckle-brushed nose, her hazel-brown eyes barely open as she covered a huge yawn with her arms. Headphones were around her neck, probably the 'blasted' ones she had been listening to before, and Gar could still hear faint heavy-metal rock thumping from them. She was dressed in a sleeveless black tee, a picture of an abashed robot covering his behind as screws and such poured out on the front, with black, flared hipster pants and black tennis shoes. The outfit showed of some of her full-bodied figure, and Gar could see why the boys hadn't been hesitant to tickle her at all. She might've been cute if he cared, but he hadn't been much in the mood for scoping out girls lately.

"You still have around fifteen minutes or so before the warning bell," Mr. Carson said, pushing them both towards the door. "Try not to be late, but if you are, Garfield's schedule is your pass. Have fun!" Mr. Carson shunted them out of the room, walking back to his desk. Gar watched him disappear into the classroom before facing his…tour guide, he supposed, and was greeted by a hand barely missing his nose as he ducked to the side at the last second. Kassie had yawned again, stretching, and then shook her head and fixed Gar in a severe stare. He stared back, pondering whether or not he should try to say something at risk of his head being torn off, according to the look she was giving him. He nervously began to open his mouth, but was interrupted even before he said something.

"So, you're a new kid?" Kassie questioned, her dagger-eyes suddenly transforming into a friendly smile. He didn't answer, taken aback by the unexpected change in attitude she had made. She chuckled, holding out her hand, and continued, "You look scared to death. I'm Kassie Malvern, and I guess I'm gonna be the one to tell you everything you need to know about this dump…I usually get landed with the job—it's Carson's way of getting back at me for sleeping in his class." She snickered, then commented, "He's probably the best teacher here, though, even if his class succeeds in being the easiest and the most boring of all. Here, lemme see your schedule for a sec."

She said this all very fast, and it took Gar a second to respond and shake her hand while giving his schedule to her with his free hand. Letting go of Gar's other hand, she studied the schedule for a second. "This is cool, you won't be _totally_ lost now," she guaranteed. She gave Gar his schedule back. "Besides Carson's class, you have biology and algebra two with me, and I know plenty of people that are in your other classes. Do you know anybody in this area, or did you just move here?"

Kassie paused and waited for an answer. Recalling his cover story, Gar remarked, "I just moved from Maine, so I would be surprised if I did know anyone."

"Me too," Kassie stated. "I'll introduce you to some people before the bell rings, of course—then you'll know at least a couple of people. Come on, let's head down to the cafeteria."

Kassie started down the hall back towards the lobby, Gar following closely. "This," she began, "is the one hundred hallway, in case you couldn't put that together from the classroom numbers. Most of the sophomores and freshmen have their classes here, whereas most of the juniors and seniors have their classes down the three and four hundred halls. Elective classes, non-academic classes, and the library are down the two hundred hall. That's where you'll have art. "

"Where's the four hundred hall?" Gar asked, unsure if Mr. Rovanshuk had mentioned one or not.

"That's behind the cafeteria." At Gar's confused face, Kassie heaved a sigh. "Oh no, Rovanshuk didn't give you a map, did she?"

Gar shook his head. "She said the school's computer server was down—"

"—so it was impossible to get another copy of your schedule or a map of the school," Kassie finished. She rolled her eyes. "That's always her stupid excuse; she's just too lazy to keep up with a stack of copies around in her office."

They entered the lobby, and Kassie pointed down the three hundred hall. "The cafeteria is further down this hall, and that's where we're going. Most kids hang out there in the morning until class starts, so it's a good place to start your tour of 'the vicious cycle of social discrimination at Jump City High School,' as Carson likes to put it."

Kassie and Gar had just passed the first row of lockers in the three hundred hall when a voice caused Kassie to stop sharply, Gar tripping over his own feet as he tried not to run into her.

"Kassie! Wait a minute, I need to talk to you!"

Gar looked up to see another girl jogging towards them, backpack bouncing on her shoulder. The first thing he noticed about her was that her hair was a seriously bright pink—almost _blinding_ pink. The accents of pink on her lime-green top and miniskirt didn't really help the matter, either.

"Jillian!" Kassie waved at the girl as she came up to them.

"I'm so glad I caught you," Jillian exclaimed as she halted in front of Kassie. "I just wanted to tell you real quick: Jess is at the hospital with pneumonia, canceling math study groups during Study Hall out until he gets back. You don't have to play secretary for us anymore, but Ms. Puekmn said she would really appreciate it if you helped wrap up two last sessions today."

"No more study groups? Darn," Kassie said in mock horror. "But I guess I have no choice but to help Ms. Puekmn, do I? She has this amazing ability to induce the most annoying feeling on earth: guilt…tell her I'll help." Jillian nodded, but Kassie suddenly seemed to remember Gar. "Oh, Jillian, this is—Garfield Logan? He's a new sophomore."

Jillian extended her hand. "Jillian Jackson."

"Just call me Gar," Gar said, shaking her hand. It seemed to him that at this rate, his hand would fall off or something from shaking one too many hands.

"Nice to meet you, but I've gotta get to class now. Hope I see you around!" And with that, Jillian was jogging back in the direction she had come from, vanishing into a throng of students that were coming towards Kassie and Gar.

Watching her go, the name of the girl in the front office flashed through Gar's mind. "Wait…is she related to Nicole Jackson?" he inquired as Kassie started leading him down the hall again.

Kassie made a face. "Ugh, don't remind me of her. Yeah, they're cousins…you must've meant her in the front office, she does assistant work there. I prefer Jillian of the two. Nicole is just…go on, try to tell me she didn't remind you of a certain blue-eyed, blonde-headed, ditzy, preppy doll."

Gar couldn't help it. He laughed. "Malibu Barbie, definitely."

Kassie snorted. "You could say that again. Just watch out for her, she's one of the biggest flirts in the history of mankind. Only problem is no guys want to flirt back—except maybe the foolish few. She never seems too bad at the beginning, but it only takes a little time…here we are! Behold: the cafeteria of some of the best and worst food around, as well as home to all the cliques in Jump City High School."

Gar could easily describe the cafeteria as a normal high school cafeteria, like the ones in shows on television. Tables lined the walls and sat in vertical rows, roped off sections along opened windows in the wall which showed sections of what could only be the school kitchen surrounded by students as they tried to fill their stomachs with a respectable breakfast before school began. At the tables more students sat, either spaced out by themselves, eating quickly, or chatting avidly in large groups sitting in intervals at the tables. A large courtyard could be seen through another set of glass doors on one side of the cafeteria, a long ramp and set of stairs on the other side leading down to another hallway. Gar also noted there were two other entrances to the cafeteria on each side of the one he and Kassie had come through. It wasn't hard to figure out the one hundred and two hundred halls must turn back around to end here as well.

"I forgot to mention, you can eat breakfast here, too, in case you didn't gather," Kassie mumbled thoughtfully, as if she hadn't actually considered it that important to mention. She then clapped her hands together ardently. "Well, on to the vital stuff. It doesn't really matter who you hang out with at this school; most people are very friendly. It's who not to bother you gotta learn. For instance," Kassie explained, starting to stroll around the outskirts of the tables, "see over there? By the courtyard?" Gar looked to where she was pointing, and saw a table full of brawny hefty guys, laughing loudly and being swooned over by a bunch of hot girls in extremely short cheerleading skirts at the doors. "All of those people are mainly football players and cheerleaders. They're not a bunch of idiots and bitches like so many people like to make them out to be—they're actually pretty nice, but have a talent for being incredibly stupid at times. They care more about partying and drinking than school, so don't hang out with them if you're trying to make it in school because they'll most likely discourage you and keep you from it.

"Now next to them," Kassie pointed at another crowd of students wearing letter jackets, a little distance unconsciously placed between them and the football crowd, "are the rest of the athletes and people doing any form of extra-curricular activities. They're more of the jock section, with people in track and swimming and basketball and even marching band. They nice, too, and care a little more about school than the football players for some reason. You'll also see them hanging around anyone in this school, too, since they're not as tightly packed as the football players and cheerleaders. Like, see that kid standing next to the water fountain? Kinda short, with the wave of brown hair and yellow backpack? He's Bart Allen, a friend of mine since seventh grade—he's the fastest guy in the county, and he won state championship for the six hundred meter sprint for the last two years. You'll see more of him around, he's always making himself known to everyone in the school.

"On to the Goths and anime-lovers. They're the bunch by the cookie line, currently serving egg burritos. It's not hard to spot them, they're a mass of black, with a few colors here and there as well as some interesting hairdos. Now they might look as scary as hell sometimes, but they're a mild-mannered group. You'll see most of them in art or drama classes, and they'll be the ones with the best grades in those classes. And don't worry, they're always glad to help you if you need art lessons or something concerning performing arts. The girl sitting on the end of the table with seven or eight people crowded around her? Everybody calls her Argent, she's the school's only albino, that's why she looks so pale. She dyed her hair solid purple this year, but every year she has a new color…anyway, she's the best person to go to if you're looking for a part in a play or some help in Analysis. That's why she's so popular with everyone."

Gar was starting to see why Mr. Carson had picked Kassie to show him around the school, excluded revenge—she appeared to know the school and the students inside out, and knew how to explain it all in a fast but informing way. Scanning the cafeteria, Gar pointed at a large group of students wearing black, red, green, maroon or yellow bandanas tied around their heads. Most were boys, wearing baggy T-shirts and jeans that looked like they were about to fall off, but some girls wearing almost the exact same thing could be picked out. They all had a mean feel about them, sending hostile glares towards others in their group or to students scampering by. A particularly nasty-looking group of about five or six students had caught Gar's eye, as students both dressed in baggy clothes and not gave them a wide berth, glancing at them nervously as they passed.

"Who're they?" Gar interrupted as Kassie clarified how to keep a computer geek from launching into a full-out description of how a GPS tracking satellite works without making them feel stupid or inferior.

Kassie looked to where he was pointing and flinched. "I'll warn you now, so you can't say I didn't later. Don't mess with that group. All those students help make up the gangs of Jump City. They're all racist, brutal, and usually sexist. Many are just posers and wannabes, pulled into the business by older siblings, but can still cause a lot of trouble. They won't shoot you, but they can and will hurt you. The school board had been trying to keep them from wearing their gang colors—that's what the bandanas are—but it doesn't work. The students do it anyway. Don't mess with them."

"I figured as much," Gar agreed. He was still watching the group of whom everybody was giving a wide berth. They weren't wearing any bandanas, as far as Gar could tell, but he doubted they were listening to the teachers.

Kassie pinpointed what else he was gazing at. "And _especially_ don't mess with them," she added hurriedly. "There's a reason why everyone is staying away from them. They don't _need_ any bandanas; they're alone a gang. Call themselves the Hybrids. The guys are the toughest in the school, and the girls—they're the 'real bitches,' not the cheerleaders, as they like to say. Even the teachers and school board are afraid of them…they want to kick the Hybrids out of school, but are terrified. And the Hybrids don't want to go—they like imposing dread wherever they go, and school is the easiest area to get that dread. It's broadly known that they're the ones that _will_ shoot you, and probably more than once, if you piss them off."

"So I won't piss them off," Gar said, ripping his eyes away from the Hybrids, who had just sauntered off towards the ramp.

A shrill bell tore through the building, making Gar jump a little and wince. All the students in the cafeteria seemed to suddenly stand up and start for the three hallways as one, groaning and complaining that the start of school was finally here. Kassie glanced up at a clock above one of the lunch/breakfast lines. "That was the first bell, so that means we have—"

"KAAAASSSSSIIIEEE!"

"Oh God, not hi—"

Without much of a warning, Kassie doubled over and was engulfed in a strangling bear hug, her arms glued against her sides as a boy piggy-backed her from behind, his eyes half-closed and a stupid grin plastered on his face. It was impossible to tell who he was while Kassie tried to buck him off without falling down, and Gar stood helplessly by, not knowing what to do. Soon enough the boy let go, however, releasing a ruffled Kassie straightening her glasses and who looked ready to bite off the boy's head.

"I swear, Michael—!" She shook her fist at the boy as she composed herself, and Gar wouldn't have been surprised if she had rushed at the boy, both fists pounding.

"Aw, I wuve you to, ittle Kaddie," the boy teased in a baby voice, patting Kassie on the back and hugging her again.

"Geroff me!" Kassie screeched, though her voice was severely muffled. The boy obeyed, laughing. Kassie glared at him.

"Okay, okay, I'm done!" the boy said, his hands raised. Gar observed him for a minute, and then backtracked—the guy looked and sounded really familiar. He was a little taller than Gar, with dusty brown hair and dark-brown eyes, his frame slight and athletic. He wore shorts, a dark green T-shirt, and a pair of back flip-flops, a sports-watch on one of wrist. His backpack hung low on his back, half-opened, but the guy didn't seem to care. It was like meeting someone on the street who you knew at the back of your mind, only realizing you went to school with them in elementary five days later.

"You better be," Kassie growled, but was ignored by the boy as he saw Gar.

"Hey! Haven't seen you around before! Do I know you?" the boy exclaimed excitedly, only to be pushed aside by Kassie.

"You don't know him, and you haven't seen him around here," she said curtly, obviously still peeved.

"And how do you know that, Miss All-Knowing?" the boy countered.

"Because he moved from Maine and today's his first day."

"Oh. Well in that case…" he held out hand to Gar. "Michael Lzuck, man, pleased to meet you."

"Gar Logan," Gar said, shaking Michael's hand.

"So, you getting the all-famous tour of 'the vicious cycle of social discrimination at Jump City High School,' eh?" Michael correctly assumed, dropping Gar's hand. "Kassie is always the best person to get to give you the tour, since she knows practically every freakin' person at this school. And she _still_ won't hook me up—"

Kassie sniffed. "You wouldn't _need_ me to hook you up if you were decent around girls."

Michael grinned, winking at Gar. "That's what she says every single time…it's not like I don't try, either…but after hanging out with a girl's whose attitude rhymes with her name, it's kinda hard. My nickname for her explains it all: Kass the As—_oof!_ Hey, what was that for?" Michael cried, clutching his side where he had just gotten so graciously elbowed. Kassie gave a satisfied smirk, then smiled sweetly at Gar.

"As I was saying before we were _rudely_ interrupted, that was the warning bell, so we have ten minutes before the late bell rings and class starts. Let's head on back to Carson's, shall we?" Kassie started walking to the ramp before Gar answered, leaving both Gar and Michael to catch up with her, and both of them did.

"So, you have Carson's class with her?" Michael asked Gar, who nodded. "Awesome. If you sit behind her during tests, and she likes you a bit, there's always the chance she might let you glance over her shoulder—I remember when she _used_ to let me do that…good days, good times…"

Kassie jokingly pushed Michael as all three of them maneuvered their way down the ramp. "Unfortunately, Gar, you have this buffoon in the rest of your classes…but he'll give you someone to talk to. Don't follow any of his advice, scholarly or socially, though, or else you'll regret it."

They turned right off the ramp, where Gar could see a bend in the hall further along, where the rest of the one hundred hall probably was. "Ha," Michael drawled, "very funny." He hooked his arm around Gar's shoulders. "But I beg to _differ_. We're gonna have a great time, pal, and don't you forget it."

"Whatever." Kassie hooked her arm around Gar's shoulders on the other side, over Michael's arm. "We're gonna have a blast in Carson's and the other classes we have _without_ you."

"Well," Gar said, breaking his silence. "At least I'll have something to look forward to in all my classes."

Kassie and Michael both laughed, unlatching their arms from Gar's back. "Relax, you won't be the center of all our arguments," Michael chortled, "Cuz there's too many of them."

Kassie landed a feint smack on Michael, who ducked. She laughed again. "He's right though…the only thing we don't fight about is music."

They rounded the corner of the hall, which did lead to the rest of the one hundred hall. "Oh, that reminds me!" Kassie and Gar both looked to Michael, waiting for him to say his remember-ation. "Kassie, Benji wanted me to remind you: the band's going to IHOP this Saturday morning, you coming?"

"Saturday morning? Sure I'm free."

"You wanna come too, Gar? It'll let you meet a couple other people. It's what, Thursday? You got two days to prepare to meet the coolest garage band around—"

"—they _think_ they're the coolest—"

"—and nobody will mind if you come. They'd most likely be thrilled, knowing them. So what do you say?"

Gar decided he really liked Kassie Malvern and Michael Lzuck. "Sure. It'd be awesome."

"Great!" Mr. Carson's room came into view, and Michael picked up his pace, getting ahead of Kassie and Gar. "I'll get you directions to the IHOP tomorrow, if you need them, since you're from Maine and all…I gotta jet, I have to get down to room 415 in less than two minutes. Later!"

Gar and Kassie waved as Michael left, stopping in front of Mr. Carson's room. Mr. Carson was walking to the door, ready to usher in the last of his students while other students slammed their lockers shut and ran down the halls, rushing to their classes before they were tardy. Kassie looked at the clock in Mr. Carson's room. "He's not going to make it," she declared to Gar as they walked into the classroom. "His watch is off. He has exactly…eight seconds until the bell rings."

A shrill bell sounded through the school again as Gar plopped down in the seat beside Kassie, and they both laughed as they thought of Michael, sprinting through the cafeteria.

* * *

The security camera right outside of Jay Carson's class zoomed in on Garfield Logan as the door closed, shutting him from view. Gar's silent stalker watched him with glee as he laughed, contemplating with pleasure in the shadows of her own making that the brat wouldn't be laughing for long…


	10. Part 2: Girls, IHOP, and Other Issues

**Author's Note:** HEY! sorry it's taken me so long to update, but i had issues that needed clearing up, and no internet access for a week and a half, as well as some minor writer's block…but i'm over that…anywayz, i'll try to have the next chapter up faster, i'm working on it now. of course, this is the first mention of the Titans since Beast Boy left the team, and i promise there will be more of these to come, so don't worry. another thing: i've introduced many new characters over this and last chapter, and any that do not appear in the Teen Titan show or comics belong to ME. also, any lyrics used by the Badboiz belong to ME, so please don't use characters or lyrics without my consent. so yeah, i bet some of you are getting curious about how long i'm gonna stick with this story? well don't sweat it, i'm gonna try to stick with it til the end...and you guys REALLY gotta stop trying to guess the plot, you're starting to scare me with how close you get! i really don't have anything more to say, so i present to you chapter ten of _Life With No Green_…

**iamhollywood: **well, you'll just have to stick around to find out about Bart and Argent, won't you?

**TDG3RD:** thanx for the compliment, and Gar hasn't even met half of the interesting characters i have in mind for him…

**dragoon-bane: **THEY ARE BACK! MUHAHAHA! (whoa, sugar rush eeeee!)

**rikagirl: **new friends are fun, old friends return

**Lee:** about the ASAP part…o.O

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

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**

The only hint that there were actually living beings in the Tower's kitchen was the soft sizzling and crackling coming from a pot full of water on the stove, vapor rising from the boiling liquid and fading into the air. The breakfast table was painfully quiet, even though four teenagers, all close friends, were gathered around it. And the silence was not the comfortable kind easily shared by family members or best friends, when there is simply nothing worth saying—it was a tense, awkward kind that everyone sharing it was unbearably aware of. Hence the irritated looks cast across the table and fingers tapping gently on the table's surface.

Raven sat with her legs crossed at one end of the table, holding a mug of steaming herbal tea with both hands and gazing decidedly at the kitchen sink. Starfire sat beside her, sighing occasionally and glancing at her friends, unsure of whether to lighten the mood or not, sipping softly at her bottle of mustard. Across from her was Cyborg, his plate of eggs and sausage untouched, trading seemingly unspoken insults with Robin, who was leaning on the counter by the stove. Their faces changed expressions with each glare they exchanged, usually going from annoyed to seething, their simmering anger detectable by even an amateur of human emotions like Starfire.

It was Saturday morning and it had been a total of two weeks since Beast Boy had been hit by the mutate bomb, as it had come to be referred to, but the Titans were far from mending the gaps of doubt and sour feelings that had appeared when the once-green elf had ceased to be a member of the team. All four remaining members considered it a miracle that the Titans had been able to defeat any of the criminals or enemies that had popped up in the last two weeks, as dysfunctional and slow as they had been. So far, no foul or suspicious words had erupted in the press, but Robin had warned the team to be on their best behavior, because it always only took so long.

Raven had agreed with Robin on this one point, and was waiting almost anxiously to see what the paparazzi would make of Beast Boy's disappearance. Almost everyone knew the Titans had achieved an almost perfect balance of things that typically led them to victory, but everyone also had a slight idea of what would happen if the Titans lost a member permanently: they would fall apart. So much had been proven when the team had lost someone before, like when Slade took away Robin, or like Starfire's testimony of what the future would amount to if she disappeared, and thanks be that both hadn't been lost permanently.

Of course, the scenario was a tad different with Beast Boy.

A soft _ding_ sounded through the kitchen, followed by a loud pop as pieces of bread flew out of the toaster by the stove. Before she knew what was happening, Raven was balancing her tea in one hand and an overturned chair barely stopped from crashing to the floor in the other, a beaming Starfire walking to the table with four pieces of toast set neatly on a plate, mustard smiley-faces painted on each. Starfire had apparently decided to try to lighten the mood. Raising an eyebrow while she righted the chair, Raven bemusedly wondered how this was going to 'go down'.

"Friends!" Starfire exclaimed with sincerity and cheer, setting the plate of toast in the center of the table. "Let us eat the bread of toast together, and then go down to your city's park, possibly? I have heard a fair of festivities is taking place, and—"

"Thanks, but no thanks, Star," Cyborg suddenly said, a little louder than necessary. "_Robin_ might want us to check with him first every time we make any sort of conversation or social advances towards anyone, and I'm not sure I want to make that much trouble when I'm buying a pretzel—"

_"What?"_ Robin growled dangerously. His face had been growing steadily redder with every word Cyborg spoke. Starfire had an expression of utter helplessness on her face, her eyes pleading with her two friends, toast forgotten on the table.

"Oh boy," Raven droned, taking a sip of her herbal tea. "Here we go. Again."

Both Cyborg and Robin ignored her comment and Starfire's nonverbal messages, having focus only for each other. "Well, you know," Cyborg began again, rising from the table with his still-full plate. "Since it's now necessary for you to sift through our _harmless_, personal business, I just figured—"

"You contacted Bumblebee and gave her confidential information! That's not _harmless_—"

"She's a member of Titans East! I called her for an evaluation on how everything's going over there—"

"And letting her know of issues over here that _don't_ concern them and could put them in danger later on, if we're not careful!"

"You put me in charge of the creation and overseeing of Titans East, they're an _extension_ of us, the original Titans; a hand can't pick up things without any freaking fingers! I was fulfilling my duty. Besides, word is starting to get around, now, Robin—people have been noticing his absence! When Titans East called us, they might've just gotten wind of some rumors. I probably wasn't telling them anything they didn't already know. It might've even been coincidence!"

"Contacting us in a matter of days after we lost an important team member to offer extra assistance is NOT coincidence! You were the only one to have communicated with them since the incident, Cyborg, and don't pretend your not close to Bumblebee. It would've been easy let our situation slip—"

"Just because _you_ have commitment issues doesn't mean we all do, Robin!"

"That's not the point! You broke protocol, Cyborg, and you know it, so you might as well admit it!"

Raven sighed as the quarreling continued, taking another sip of her tea, which was starting to get lukewarm. Cyborg had thrown his plate in the sink and was bending over a recoiling Robin as he told him off, only to switch positions when Robin began telling him off. Raven wondered if Bumblebee had known the trouble she would cause when she politely informed the Titans that any member of Titans East was eager and ready to go if the Titans needed any help in Jump City. Most likely not. Raven peered over at Starfire, who was shooting positively grumpy looks at the boys, both oblivious to the two girls and the rest of their surroundings. Raising her mug, Raven watched her Tamaranian friend, muttering into her tea, "And three…two…one…"

"ENOUGH!" Starfire thundered, silencing the argument instantly and looming over the two boys like a hungry lioness. Robin and Cyborg stared at her, stunned, angry words gone in their startlement. Raven hid a snicker in her tea, quickly resuming her equilibrium of emotions afterwards, lest she break out in a laughing fit only to explode something. She really didn't know what was so funny, but she had been reminded of her dull sense of humor many times by…_ah, no, don't think of him,_ Raven scolded herself, turning her attention back to Starfire and the others after the few seconds it had been diverted.

Starfire seemed to shrink back to normal size when she spoke again, her good nature returning, though worry was weaved in her voice. "Friends, please," she said, clasping her hands in front of her. "This is much more than 'the getting on the nerves'. You mustn't fight like this! If Beast Boy were here, I am sure he would not want you fighting because of him."

Cyborg and Robin glanced at each other, not in anger but in guilt. Starfire had this _amazing_ ability to make peace between friends through shame, Raven noted. It was clever, but Raven never even considered that Starfire did it on purpose. Robin stepped forward, apology in his every movement. "Star, we're not fighting because of him, we're just…" He looked to Cyborg in distress, but Cyborg was too busy staring at the ground, at loss for words as well.

"Yes? You are just what?" Starfire asked, inquisitive yet firm. "You are fighting over dispensed information about him, are you not? I believe you are also still mad at his departure, yes?"

"She's right." Raven sat her tea down and rose, aroused by this last bit of unintentional wisdom. "You two have got to stop this. Cyborg already contacted Titans East, whether or not it was about Beast Boy, and Titans East already offered us help, whether or not it was spurred by knowledge of Beast Boy's resignation. It all has now happened in the past, and bickering over it won't change anything. We either accept their offer or not, and move on."

Robin had started nodding as Raven spoke, and Cyborg had looked up. Now they looked at each other, and Cyborg held out his robotic hand. "Truce?" he gravelly asked Robin.

"Truce," Robin agreed, grasping Cyborg's hand.

As if to punctuate their renewed friendship, the Titans alarm blared through the Tower, flashing red lights illuminating the kitchen. All the Titans looked at each other, and Robin gave a timid smile. "Okay," he said, heading to the door. "Titans: _go!_"

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**Around forty minutes earlier (or something like that)

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**

"So you got everything? Cell phone included?" Steve asked once more as Gar and he walked up the sidewalk to the International House of Pancakes, heading towards the double-glass doors where a friendly sign plastered on the inside read '_Yes, we're OPEN'._ Gar nodded his head, putting his hand in one of his back pockets to make sure his two twenty dollar bills were still there…it hadn't been often he had been trusted with more than ten dollars since he lost sixty dollars when he was twelve, and Gar could definitely get used to having enough money to do something with. Of course, Steve had said this money should last him for a week or two, and he shouldn't be expecting anymore freeloading when he got a job, which he _would_ get in another couple weeks. According to Steve.

"And I'll pick you up at the mall three hours from now? Outside T.J. Benny's?"

Gar nodded again as they came up to the door, though Steve seemed unwilling to relax. He looked at his foster father, glad he could know for sure that at least one person cared enough for him, even if he would rather know for sure that four other certain people cared as Steve did…"Don't worry," Gar told Steve as he opened the door to the restaurant, shaking away his bitter thoughts, "I'll be fine."

"Oh," Steve laughed quickly, jerking away his eyes from a huge, tattooed and pierced bulk of a man smoking a cigarette, "did it seem like I was worried? I wasn't worried. I know you'll be fine. Nothing could possibly happen in a crowded, family-fun restaurant, right?"

Gar tried not to laugh at the falsely cheerful and slightly ludicrous smile on Steve's face, and gave his party's name to the hostess. "Ah, you're with that group, are you?" she asked, picking up a menu and handing it to a waitress standing beside her. "You must be knew to the mix, I haven't seen you around before."

The hostess gave a friendly wink, and the waitress mumbled a barely coherent, "Right this way." Gar started to follow her, but was stopped when Steve touched him on the arm.

"I told you you'd make it work," Steve said fondly, all apprehension gone from his face. "Now go have some fun."

Gar smiled at Steve, then jogged to catch up with the waitress, who was waiting impatiently by the bathrooms. She instantly took off when she saw Gar coming towards her, leading him to a corner of the restaurant where a large group of teens sat around one of the huge corner booths with the circular tables. They were all average-looking guys, probably about four or five of them. Most were dressed in the usual Saturday attire, shorts and a T-shirt, but each had on something black. Gar searched the group for a familiar face, but before he could locate Kassie or Michael, the whole table exploded in laughter, causing many of the surrounding parties to turn and give wild or annoyed glares.

"Gar!" someone cried from behind him as the laughter died down, and he turned as well. Kassie was running around a bend, waving. Her voice must've also caught the attention of the table, because Michael suddenly appeared out of the crowd as most of them stood up to let him through.

"Hey, glad you two finally showed up," he commented as Kassie stopped beside Gar. The waitress put Gar's menu on the table, snatched another menu from a passing waiter, put it on top of Gar's, and left. "We decided to postpone ordering until you guys arrived," he added, leading Kassie and Gar up to the table.

"An' it was a powerful difficult time, considerin' John here 'as a stomach of an elephant or sumin', an' he 'asn't aten since lunch yesterday," one of the boys around the table shouted with a strong Australian accent of a sort, jabbing a thumb at the person sitting next to him.

"Well, it wasn't my fault you came over and emptied my fridge _at_ lunch yesterday," the guy being accused whined in an injured voice. "Damn those campus passes," he grumbled amid another spell of laughter.

"And weren't you the one who suggested giving a campus pass to Nick?" Kassie asked lightly over the laughing, a lilting light in her eyes.

"Yeah, but he didn' spect me to stop raiding 'is lunch tray and start on 'is fridge," Nick reconciled, causing everyone to laugh harder or start laughing yet again.

As the laughter died down again, a new person spoke. "Now stop bickering, you two, so Kassie and Michael can introduce us to their new friend."

"We weren't bickering!" John protested, but fell silent as Kassie gave him one of her looks. Nick snickered, then fell silent also.

Michael cleared his throat and took the floor. "Lady and gentlemen," he announced in a ridiculously low and showy voice, "first I would like to tell you all I am using this preposterous broadcast voice because I plan to become the world's top announcer one day, announcing the best of the best—"

"Aw, just cut to the chase, man, or else we'll all just introduce ourselves," a guy sitting at the end of the booth complained, shoving Michael a bit.

"You suck," Michael retorted brilliantly in his normal voice. "Anyway, Gar, the dorks who sit in front of you are the Badboiz garage band, who'll introduce themselves because they suck, and guys, this is Garfield Logan, preferably Gar, just moved from the chill of Maine."

The guy on the end of the booth whistled. "Sure made your way down here, didn't you?" he said, extending his hand so Gar could shake it. He had dusty-blonde hair that he was constantly brushing out of his eyes, and looked to Gar like one of the surfer guys you would see in a sports magazine: hard-ripped, tall, tan, and down-to-earth. Today he was wearing sandals and shorts, with a black T-shirt on. Gar noticed he was also acquiring some attention from the opposite sex around him; excluding Kassie, of course. "I'm Tye Suliven, drummer of the Badboiz."

"An' I'm Nick Sculler, mate, the coolest New Zealander bass guitarist plus back-up vocals you'll ever meet," Nick interrupted, leaning across Tye and shaking Gar's hand before Tye could. He had bleached-blonde hair, gelled and spiked at the top, a crooked grin and a silver ring decorating his right nostril. He seemed a bit shorter than Tye, and had on a sleeveless black shirt with shorts and tennis shoes.

"I beg to differ on the 'coolest' part," Tye muttered, shaking Gar's hand as soon as Nick had stopped.

"Now don't start _bickering_ with Nick," the guy sitting beside Nick said, shooting a glower at Nick before giving Gar a huge smile and reaching across the table to do his introductory. He had short brown hair, very much like Michael's and was wearing all black, T-shirt, shorts, tennis shoes and even a black wrist band. "John Stofbecker, guitarist two and back-up vocalist two." He shook Gar's hand. "But my guitar is the spiffiest one out of all of ours."

"You wish, little brother." The same guy that had scolded Nick and John for bickering and had stood up beside Kassie now came forward, holding his hand out. He looked extremely similar to John, with the same eyes and face, but black hair instead of brown. He seemed to share a fondness for black as well, since he was wearing a black shirt, black jeans, and black converse shoes. "Benji Stofbecker, lead vocals and rhythm guitarist. John and me are the founders of the Badboiz, and proud of it to this day."

"Even though there's not always a lot to be proud of," Kassie smirked playfully, earning a soft punch in the arm from Benji and groans from the rest of the band. "What?" Kassie asked innocently, "You guys should be glad to recieve feedback from your assistant manager, seeing as I'm the one who listens to you from the audience at gigs."

"Yeah, and you know how much we love hearing your voice cheering in the crowd of wild fans," Benji replied, winking at Kassie while she snorted at took his seat at the booth.

"More like how much _you_ love hearing her, Benji," John grumbled, gaining a few chuckles and snickers from the rest of the guys. "Now stop flirting so we can eat already."

"Yeah, 'e's startin' to drool on me," Nick said out of the side of his mouth as everyone scooted around the booth to make room for Michael, Gar, and Benji. Soon Gar had taken Tye's old spot, the edge of the booth, followed by Michael, then Tye, John, Nick, Kassie, and Benji. They had finally managed to get all their orders settled with an incredulous-looking waitress, who had kept refusing John and Michael's pleas to go out with them between every order, when John and Tye began grilling Gar on what it was like in Maine while Kassie, Nick, and Benji were debating the band's schedule mixed with school. Since Gar had never been to Maine and was uncomfortable about answering questions he didn't really know the answers too, he somehow succeeded in turning around the conversation.

"So, you dudes play at gigs?" Gar asked after blankly reassuring Tye that the puffin population was quite fine (**A/N:** I'm not crazy, they're a type of bird—I swear, go type it in on Google!) in Maine.

"When we can," John said keenly, relieved like Gar to be talking about something other than remote artic birds. "Kassie and Michael usually set them up for us, but it's hard to get booked in places like Jump City."

"Tell me about it," Michael said, pouring himself some orange juice out of one of the pitchers the waitress had brought by earlier. "Last weekend I was literally kicked out of X-Zone, one of the coolest clubs in Jump City that restricts underage drinking and everything, because they said they didn't want a bunch of kids playing at the club. But who normally goes there? Practically every high school student in the city, that's who." Michael made a face, and chugged the rest of his orange juice. "Dorks didn't even look at the band's resumé-thingy."

"Why is it so hard because you're in Jump City? To get booked, I mean," Gar continued curiously.

"Well, you see, this city's a damn big one," Tye said. "Rivaling Los Angeles and Miami, I think. So there's tons of other bands right out of the garage like us, that's why we still call ourselves a garage band, and they're all trying to make it big like us. Plus the added factor of—"

"Tourist attraction," John finished for Tye, taking over. "With tons of tourist coming in practically all the time, minus a few weeks of September, October, and March, clubs and entertainers or anyone that wants live music only wants the best. Bands always scramble for the publicity, and it's like a madhouse at boardwalks and beachside outlets."

"Wait—tourists?" Gar halted John. A potbellied man wearing a huge Hawaiian print shirt with a straw hat and camera hanging around his neck popped into Gar's mind. He hadn't ever really seen any tourists before, and what was in Jump City worth seeing?

"Yeeeeaaaah…" Michael looked at him as if he were crazy. "What would you call the idiots walking into rip-off souvenir shops and coming out with little half-broken gadgets that they're so proud of. It's why all the would-be homeless people in this city are not homeless—they just go into the tourist business, giving tours and selling trinkets."

Tye gave Michael a dirty look, and John snickered. "Yeah the tourists are sometimes gullible around here. But you can't blame them, I'm sure the tourists that go to Gotham City and Metropolis are the same way," John concluded, finishing his orange juice like Michael just as two waitress appeared next to the table with trays full of steaming pancakes, eggs, waffles, and whatnot. John's face brightened considerably. "Finally!"

"Huh?" Gar's plate of buttermilk pancakes was sat down in front of him. They hadn't had any tofu, though Gar sometimes wondered why he continued his tofu practice. "Gotham City and Metropolis?" he repeated stupidly.

"You know, home of the 'Dark Knight' and Superman?" Tye answered while John and Michael both tucked in to their meals. "Not as many tourists go there, of course, anymore, since both guys are now on Justice League's watchtower space station more often than at their original bases. But in Jump City, the tourists flock because of the bay and beaches as well as hopes of glimpsing the Teen Titans, and they're usually not disappointed."

Gar's fork froze halfway to his mouth, and he practically felt the heat rushing to his face. Luckily everyone was to busy eating or being handed their plates to notice his sudden lapse of cool, and Gar was able to recover himself with a small "Oh," before he shoved a mouthful of syrupy pancakes into his mouth. _I should've been ready for that,_ Gar thought as he chewed. _The Titans are probably everyday news to people in Jump City…though I really haven't seen any news about them._

"Yeah, it gets annoying when people start flashing their cameras as five battling teens and typically a large monster of some sort are heading directly at them," Michael stated between his bites. "If I was one of the Titans, I'd probably be pissed at having to save those dopes. It's like, hello, ever heard of_ running in the other direction_?"

John laughed and then started coughing, his face turning red while Nick pounded on his back until the guilty piece of egg came up. Without thinking, Gar said absently, "To tell you the truth, we never really noticed."

Michael and Tye stared at him as John's face returned to its regular shade of peach, and it took Gar a minute to realize what he had said. "I meant me…and my foster dad!" Gar blurted. "Yeah, the—the times we've been out, we've never really noticed all the tourists or whatever. I mean, it's not like they go walking around in…uh, Hawaiian print shirts with huge cameras hanging around their necks, right?"

Michael shrugged, and was about to reply when a high-pitched, cheerfully preppy voice that Gar had heard once before called across the restaurant, "OOhh my gaw, Garfield? Is that you? And Benji?"

All the guys at the table light our soft moans, and John whispered harshly, "Speaking of annoying…"

Nicole Jackson suddenly appeared next to Gar, wearing barely butt-length cut-off shorts with a seriously tiny pink tank-top and flip-flops. Her blonde hair fell across her shoulders, gleaming in sunlight, and her smile was as wide as her face, showing almost all of her straight, extremely white teeth. She was incredibly hot, but if you went by the rolling eyes, tight smiles, and false glee plastered on every single face, excluding Michael, she was far from it.

"Nicole!" Michael exclaimed hopefully, a genuine grin on his face. "What's up?"

"Nothing," Nicole said quickly, her eyes on Gar instead. Michael's face fell. "So, you met the band I see?" she asked Gar, who simply nodded, a little creeped out by Nicole's stare. He usually liked blondes, but Nicole had a tendency to scare him. And that was saying something.

"He's been accepted as one of us now, poor boy," John spoke up. Nick, Tye, and Michael laughed, while Benji continued eating and Kassie silently moved her lips. It looked like she was praying.

"Ah, so this was his coronation breakfast," Nicole said, placing an arm around Gar and sitting halfway on his lap. He stiffened, and sent a pleading look around the table. Michael was watching him longingly, John and Nick were snickering into their hands and food, and Tye was shaking his head. Kassie was still busy praying or whatever, and Benji gave him a powerless smile with a 'you're on your own, kid' look. "Don't look like you're used to this," Nicole purred, referring to Gar's barely eaten pancakes. She batted her eyes.

Michael dropped his fork, yawned, and stretched back at that instant, his two waffles that had been stacked on his plate gone, his eggs also. Done praying, Kassie snorted and said, "Well, _Michael_ sure is, for that matter."

John and Nick couldn't hide their amusement behind their hands any longer, and Nicole gave a haughty glare at them and Kassie. Michael grinned again at her, and she returned her attention to Gar. "I see that," she said, giving a fake laugh. Gar didn't. "Now, the day calls, so I should get going." She told this to everyone, and removed herself from Gar. She gave him a flattering smile and waved to rest of the table. "No doubt you all will see me soon enough, so be good while I'm gone. I'll be back for you, Gar," she added, and with a last flip of her hair disappeared further into the restaurant.

"At last," Kassie breathed, mouthing a silent 'thank you' to the ceiling. Gar guessed she had been praying for Nicole's departure.

John nodded in agreement, then looked towards his older brother. "You know, you owe Gar a 'thank you,' Benji," he said seriously, the smile creeping into his voice at the last second the only thing that implied he was joking.

"I do?" Benji asked confusedly, clearly not following John's humor.

"Sure! He got Nicole off your back! Try to tell me you're not relieved."

Everyone at the table burst into laughter, Gar and Benji included. "I guess I do, then," Benji remarked. "Thank you."

"I'm not sure I can say you're welcome," Gar replied apologetically, earning more laughs.

"Aw, come on, guys," Michael said when the noise died down again. "Consider yourselves lucky to be flirted with by her."

Benji stuck out his tongue. "You wouldn't be saying that if you were the one being flirted with. It's freaking frightening to be on the receiving end of her hair flips. She barely misses your head sometimes. Besides," he said, putting his arm around Kassie as she blushed slightly, "I like my picks better."

John gave a catcall, and Michael shook his head. "You're blind. She's got everything you could want in a girl—blonde hair, gorgeous eyes, a busting bosom, a big ass—"

"You perv!" Kassie yelped as the others laughed, grabbing one of the biscuits she had gotten with her meal and chucking it at his head.

"Hey!" he said as it hit him squarely in the forehead. "I'm just sayin—"

But no one ever found out just what Michael was going to say.


	11. Part 2: Toast on the Floor

_(amused4ever and Beast Boy walk timidly into a dark room, an abandoned computer screen in the back)_

**Me:** HELLO? HELLO? (_scratches__ head, eyes scanning room_) AIY! don't tell me i'm the only one here! (_waits__ in silence for a few seconds, then covers face in hands and bursts into tears_) WAA! where have all my reviewer buddies gone? am i alone, deserted, beat down, and left for dead?

**Beast Boy:** (_pats amused4ever's back awkwardly_) erm, i'm sure they'll come back… (_after__ a slight pause, grin spreads on his face_) i mean the story is about me, right? they can't resist little old me! (puffs out chest show-off like)

**Me:** (_lifts head from hands, glares threateningly_) shut up.

**Author's Note: **don't tell me i ran you all off with boredom, either! okay, i do feel like last chapter was kinda mediocre, but i really hope this chapter makes up for that! for those of you who have been craving for action and are already tired of Gar's social life, this chapter is devoted to you! but first, i have an important question for all of my reviewers (by the way, you guyz rock, all of you, new and old, so come back!): do you think i put Beast Boy/Gar too outta character? i mean, this whole fanfic is about delving deeper into his personality and feelings, but i don't wanna distort him into someone else completely, so you have to warn me if i'm starting to do that, alrighty? keep me tuned, i'll be listening out. anywayz, now i have something else to share—these last couple of chapters that i've written have just been almost like background information, you know, setting the stage for the play. i introduced many of the past characters for reasons that'll be important to the plot and the flow of the story, i can't tell you that enough. i'm sorry if i lost a couple readers due to the bore and uninvolvement of the Teen Titans, believe me, but i swear the pace is picking up from now on out. SO COME BACK! and great new episode last Saturday, July 2nd, no? i hope they didn't just kill off raven, though…

**dragoon-bane: **wow, i can really count on your review at all times even if you don't read the author's note, can't i? dude, seeing as you've been begging for bbrae 'interaction' the whole time, the rest of any romance between the two in this story are written for you…

**SlOpPyKiSsEs: **WHOA! a new reviewer! YAY! you like my story? sit tight and i'll give you more to like…pleeze come back again!

**bianca**** rios:** WHOA! another new reviewer! DOUBLE YAY! bbrae is on the way, and me mucho gusto mexico! and pleeze come back…

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**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

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**

A huge shockwave suddenly shook the restaurant from the ground up, cutting off Michael's words and sending glasses, plates, and pitchers crashing to the ground. Customers steadied themselves on walls and in seats as waiters and waitresses danced around in an effort to keep emptied plates and trays full of food balanced treacherously in their arms from falling to the floor. More than a few didn't succeed, the carpet and tile soon sporting eggs and pancakes as well as glass shards. It was astonishingly weird, how everyone grew quiet and conversations stopped for the split second instincts took over and people tried to stay off the ground. Of course, the silence didn't last long, as the trembling arrested as abruptly as it had started. Shouts of confusion and fear flitted across the booths and table, staff and consumers both beginning to make their way towards the doors at the front of the restaurant.

"What the 'ell was that?" Nick exclaimed as the rumbling halted, his eyes lingering on the orange juice soaking into the rug and the pieces of glass that had used to be the party's orange juice pitcher.

For a minute no one responded, stunned at the disruption of their Saturday breakfast. John was the first to move and speak as he glanced up through the window that was at his back just as a huge shadow blocked the morning sun for a moment, covering the street outside and most of the area around the restaurant. "Uh, guys?" His eyes flickered nervously as the shadow passed over. "I believe we should make our exit now."

He got about five dubious glimpses before the street outside of the window suddenly exploded, pieces of cement and pavement rushing at the glass. John ducked under the table right in time as some rubble flew through the window were he had been moments before, skidding across the table and coming to rest on top of the remains of the orange juice pitcher. In an instant, the stunned air that had enveloped the group a moment before disappeared, everyone scrambling out of the booth to join the crowd pushing out of the restaurant. Benji had pushed Kassie in front of him and they were the first to head to the doors, closely followed by a sprinting Nick dragging a ruffled-looking John behind him. Gar helped Michael and Tye out of the booth and all three of them began to run towards the mass of people fighting and pushing to get out of the building.

"What just happened?" Gar shouted over the din at Michael, who was a bit in front of him with Tye.

"Look out that window," Michael shouted back over his shoulder, "And I guarantee you'll see the flashes of cameras going off." He turned back around to face the door as they drew level with it, and then glanced back at lack of answer from Gar to see his friend racing in the direction they had just come from. "What! I didn't mean for him to take that _literally_!" he screamed at Tye in alarm as he was pushed through an opening to the exit.

But Gar wasn't looking for tourists as he scrambled over the booth he had been enjoying his breakfast at a few minutes ago and through the smashed window, though he imagined he saw a few here or there. A wild rebelliousness had swept over him the second he had put the puzzle together, his desperate desire to see his old friends once more so consuming he barely noticed as his shin was sliced open by a glass wedge when he landed roughly outside the window, or the warnings people shouted at him as he ran in the opposite direction everyone else was headed in. No, his eyes were only for the huge, stone-like creature fumbling around the street only a few painstakingly close yards away, and the teenage superheroes fighting it in an effort to stop its rampage. And they were desperately failing.

A violent push and a near whack to the head by a parking meter woke Gar from his trance, and he realized he wasn't in the best of places—in the middle of a sidewalk with people shoving him back and forth next to a street which was currently occupied by battling superpowers was never a good place to be. He was about to turn around and get a little farther away when he realized something he hadn't before. He saw the brilliant green light beams belonging to Starfire glancing off of Cinderblock's back and arms, and he recognized Cyborg and Robin's famous Sonic-Boom move…but Raven.

Where was Raven?

Directly across the street from where Gar was standing, an eruption of screams sounded, drawing Gar's eyes like a magnet. People were dashing away from a cloud of dust that was rising into the air, though its source was hidden from Gar by a parked truck that was remarkably still in one piece. A darkly dressed figure shot up from the center of the cloud, blue cape streaming behind. Raven. Gar took a couple hesitant steps into the street as she flew to join the battle with Cinderblock, and he wondered what had kept her.

Immediately after this thought another figure much larger and heavier than Raven leapt from the cloud, stirring up the dust again. It landed in the street a little ways from Gar, and Gar's heart skipped a beat as he took in the bright red armor and snidely-smiling brown face watching Raven fervently. It was a villain he thought had been locked up for sure, and had never wished to see again: Adonis. Bad memories surfaced in Gar's mind—his transformation into that man-beast, the close-to-death experiences both he and Raven had…the armor had some differences, some gadgets with purposes Gar couldn't guess, but there was no doubt about whom was inside.

Oblivious to the fact that his former archenemy was standing practically right behind him, Adonis raised an armored arm and trained it on Raven as she glided farther into the sky, a sickly grin on his face that made Gar's stomach turn once or twice. After a loud snap and hiss, the arm swiftly transformed into a blaster similar to Cyborg's sonic canon, and Adonis mouthed something that suspiciously seemed like _'Asta laviesta, baby!'_ Raven halted in midair as if she had heard him, eyes widening slightly as the tip of the gun glowed red and a series blasts shot off towards her. Gar's eyes followed her while she dodged the blasts and levitated closer towards to the ground like his life too depended on her flight. Adonis, however, was not put off by Raven's escapes, and merely kept firing at her with a calculating glee in his eyes. Gar took a couple more steps out into the street, anxiously waiting for her safety to come from some anyone, anywhere…but the rest of the Titans had their hands full with Cinderblock's raw strength, and couldn't do anything for their distressed team member if they wanted to.

Gar switched his observance to Starfire and Robin as they both flew through the sky on top of one another, thrown aside by Cinderblock as he wrestled with Cyborg, and then turned his attention back towards Raven to find Adonis firing rapidly at her feet while she glided straight upwards. Gar then witnessed what he would later regard as the longest two seconds in life.

With an impossible speed, explained by the action of transforming his other arm into a blaster as well while Raven dodged shots from his other arm, Adonis suddenly changed aim, firing at Raven's head, his other arm firing simultaneously at her feet. It took a moment of dawning horror for Gar to realize exactly what this meant for Raven: she had no where to dodge to, caught off guard as she was. Time seemed to slow down and freeze as red light covered Raven in a silhouette, her body curving gracefully into a perfect arc, outlined in a deadly red glow. In that instant, she was a striking picture of unbelievable pain and indescribable beauty, causing Gar's heart to leap out as he watched powerlessly, a monstrous rushing growing filling his ears. Glimpses of memories long passed and sealed away flashed through Gar's mind; a vision of a elegant red-haired woman, dressed in a khaki safari outfit, her hands reaching up with an expression of fear illustrating every inch of her face, as she fell into an abyss of blackness, worry etched into the crows-feet at corners of her sky-blue eyes; a man, dark brown hair falling over his face, looking down with distress and concern shadowing his forest-green eyes. Numbers of faceless people tumbled over a cliff of water, their lifeless bodies swirling in cold blue currents, drowning, dying…

"NO!"

Gar had shouted and was tearing across the street towards Raven's crumpled and plummeting figure on impulse, his mind detached from his body. He felt as if it were someone else darting across the street, bypassing an astounded Adonis instants before a blast of green knocked him to the ground, unconscious…as if it were someone else stretching out his arms as he jumped over a discarded purse, a flying piece of metal barely missing his back. Raven appeared to pick up discouraging speed as she plunged to the ground, and Gar dazedly wondered if she would be caught before she crashed into cement, her body breaking with the impact, bones snapping, flesh ripping…

But he immediately snapped back to himself as he skidded to a halt, his shoes slipping on loose gravel and as Raven's body slammed into his extended arms, her weight and speed carrying him to the ground, his feet slipping from underneath him because of the gravel. Air rushed out of his lungs as his back smacked into the incredibly hard pavement, his teeth chattering and every bone in his body jarred. The back of his head smashed into the ground, stars bursting in front of his eyes. Raven's body crushed his, but he didn't mind her hip digging into his pelvis, if it meant she was alright and unbroken. Groaning, Gar struggled to a sitting position, cradling Raven in his arms with lights chasing back and forth across his vision. She started to slip out of his lap, but he automatically gripped her waist and slid his arms underneath her legs, situating her across himself as he fought to gather his wits again.

At feeling a gentle tickle on his forearm, Gar quickly glanced down, regretting his movement as a bolt of pain shot down his neck. Grimacing, Gar focused his sliding vision on Raven, to figure out what damage had been done. Basically, she had fallen too fast and rough for him to _catch_ her—he had pretty much just kept her head and upper body from slamming to the ground. Her legs, however, hadn't been so lucky, hurtling into the pavement as Gar's back had when he had lost his balance. A long scrape ran up one of her legs, droplets of blood trickling onto Gar's arm, and mildly wondered if she would be able to walk. He felt like _he_ couldn't.

Then again, he couldn't necessarily stay out in the open while there was a huge stone giant prancing around between skyscrapers and other buildings next to him, and a loaded human weapon on the edge of waking up. Grunting, he hefted Raven's weight and picked himself up, staggering as his back notified him just how forceful its impact had been with the ground. Ignoring the streaks of pain that ran up and down his spine, Gar moved behind the still-in-one-piece bright-red truck that was parked only a foot or so away, sitting down on the curb with Raven once he had gotten behind the safety of its massive hulk. A vast crater was in the sidewalk a few inches from the curb, and Gar gathered this had been the source of the dust cloud earlier. The other sidewalks finally seemed to be empty of the public population, and Gar could hear the distant sounds of police sirens. If you could shut out the explosive booms, shouts, and angry roars of the fighting raging on the other side of the truck, the morning could actually be peaceful.

There was fighting still going on, though, and the sounds reminded Gar he had a Titan out cold in his hands who could be critically hurt and who he should probably be trying to wake up before Adonis. He looked down at Raven, enjoying the sight of her face for a minute or two…smooth lips parted slightly, wisps violet-blue hair falling over her eyes, closed not in frustration, concentration, or fear, but naturally. It was an expression of complete relaxation, an expression Gar had rarely seen on Raven's face. Her head fit neatly in the crook of Gar's arm as he held her, the curves of the rest of her body fitting perfectly against Gar's. A silent thrill unexpectedly ran through him, his heart thumping in his chest as he surveyed Raven, her body pressing against his. _She looks so fragile_, he thought, an odd fluttering sensation filling his stomach. His face began to grow hot, and his mouth started to go dry.

A fire hydrant hammered into the cement beside the truck, skimming into the crater and breaking the strange trance that had come over Gar. Taking his arm out from under Raven's legs, he brushed the wisps of hair out of her face and carefully shook her shoulder. "Raven," he called softly. She didn't respond. Clearing his throat, he tried again. "Raven, come on, don't scare me anymore. Wake up," he said louder, shaking her shoulder a little harder. Nothing. Trying to remember his really, really old first aid course he had taken in, like, fifth grade, he took one of her hands and began feeling for her pulse on her wrist, keeping her head supported on his other arm. He believed she was breathing, but he really didn't know what to do.

All of a sudden Raven's eyelids flickered, causing Gar to drop her hand and grip her shoulder. "Raven?" He watched her face closely. "Give me a sign, anything to let me know if you can hear me…"

When she spoke, Gar had to lean in to be able to hear her. "Bea…Beast Boy?" she whispered, opening her eyes navy-blue and looking adamantly confused. He stiffened a tad at hearing that name, but Gar gave a small smile.

She stared at him, then realized he was holding her. She pushed herself up quickly, letting only one grimace escape her mask as her face resumed its usual monotone expression. Gar let her move around in his arms, steadying her even though she refused to look at him. Sitting up, Raven realized she was now, quite frankly, sitting in Gar's lap, and he had to resist and urge to laugh as she scrambled off him, almost landing on her butt in the process. "Are you okay?" he asked once she had composed herself on the curb beside him. "You fell at least twenty stories, and you're really hard to catch going like a hundred miles an hour."

"I'm fine," she informed Gar, inspecting the cut on her leg. Her hands pulsed black, and she placed them on the cut as a black glow grew around them. When she lifted them from her leg, the cut was gone, like it had never been there. _Right,_ Gar remembered, _she has healing powers, too._ Raven raised her eyes from her leg. "It was a stun gun. Where's Adonis?"

"He was knocked out," Gar told her, glancing nervously at the red truck they hid behind. "But I don't know how long—"

At that instant, the truck was lifted up effortlessly and tossed aside by none other than Adonis.

Gar and Raven scampered to their feet, Gar stepping out in front of Raven protectively, although he knew that he was probably the one who needed protecting. Adonis observed them eagerly, letting a peal of laughter break loose when he saw Gar standing in front of Raven, an absurd picture of a bluffing man scared to death. "So, doll, you picked up _another_ knight in shining armor?" Adonis boomed, snickering. "'Cept he seems to be missin' the armor. Either way, I'm hurt." He laughed again.

Embarrassed and angry beyond point, Gar opened his mouth to utter something, anything that would shut up Adonis's sputtering. But Adonis wasn't done. "Oh, _please_," he continued, noticing Gar's demeanor, "don't even think about shooting one of those macho lines like, 'Hey, pick on someone your own size!'" He took a rumbling step up to the curb and looked down at Gar, who had to crane his neck to see Adonis's face. "That just wouldn't be _fair_."

Adonis roared with laughter, Gar's face turning red, but his shame was short-lived. Adonis stopped laughing in time enough to swear once before two slabs of concrete crackling with black energy, exact to his length and width, crushed him. Gar stared at the two slabs as the crashed to the ground for a delayed moment, his blush frozen in shock. He felt a light hand on his shoulder, and he turned to face Raven. She studied him for a moment, and then said quietly, "You should leave now."

The cement remains Adonis had been buried in suddenly burst open, an insane gleam in Adonis's eyes present as he climbed out of the rubble way too fast for Gar and Raven to do anything but stare. "_You wench!_" he screamed at Raven, bringing one of his massive armored hands down the exact second Raven began to push Gar out of the way. She was too late, unfortunately, and Adonis's hand connected with Gar, knocking the air out of him and sending him flying to the ground a good ten feet away. With Gar gone, Adonis had tried to pick up Raven and was rewarded with obsidian energy covering him and swinging him into a building.

Raven looked towards Gar as climbed up shakily, and shouted forcefully, "Get out of here!" Gar watched helplessly as Adonis recovered from the blow and started to charge at Raven, only to be halted by a wall of black. Raven noted he still hadn't left. "_Now!_" she shouted again, her voice threatening. And with a concentrated blast of energy aimed at Gar's back, he was sprinting down the street, a string of curses running from his mouth. Raven gave a small, satisfied nod; then Adonis once more swallowed all her attention.

* * *

"Girls!" Gar fumed as he banged his way into the kitchen, jolting Steve out of his work, which was spread all over the table, some papers fluttering to the ground at the force of the slamming front door. Steve glanced up from a contract he was reviewing, Gar stomping past him and going to the freezer. Steve returned to the contract, then jerked his head back up and stood, his chair falling to the ground as he rushed over to his foster son.

"Oh my God, Gar, what the _hell_ happened?" Steve cried, grabbing the ice pack Gar had been reaching for, slamming the freezer shut and ushering Gar over to the table in one swift motion. Gar sighed, took the ice pack, and buried it into his left eye. He had predicted Steve would freak when he saw the condition Gar had managed to scrape up for himself. How many parents _didn't_ freak when they saw their son walk into the house with a black eye, his back and hair covered with dust, a tiny limp, and caked blood on the back of his head?

"Please don't tell me you got into a fight," Steve continued, getting a rag from the kitchen sink and wetting it, most likely so he could clean off the back of Gar's head. His hair was glued together in sticky clumps, so it wasn't a pretty sight.

Gar hesitated as Steve came up behind him. "Well," he began slowly, "it wasn't exactly a fight. At least the kind you're thinking of. And I didn't start it."

Steve was silent for a second, then gave the rag to Gar and walked to the other side of the table, a stern look on his face. "Oh really?" he said lightly, picking up the chair he had abandoned and sitting in it. "Enlighten me."

Gar scowled, thinking of Raven. "It isn't important."

"Yeah." Steve snorted. "You're just covered in shit, your clothes are torn up, you probably have a head concussion, but it's nothing important."

Gar stared at Steve, surprised at his foster father's language and obvious concern he was showing. And he was searching for something to say. "I…fell," he answered truthfully but lamely to Steve's implied question.

"Huh. So now we get black eyes from falling?"

Gar winced. It wasn't _his_ fault Raven decided the best way to get rid of him was to shoot him. Of course, it was kind of his fault he had been so smart as to look back right as the bolt of black power Raven had sent after him grew level with his head, resulting in a very painful collision between the bolt of power and, rather coincidently, his left eye. "That's nothing," Gar said, evading the question.

Steve seemed to double in size with his anger, and Gar immediately regretted his evading. "That's _nothing_?" he exclaimed. "You have a black eye, maybe a few broken bones, and a head concussion, but that's _nothing_?"

"I thought I _probably_ had a head concision. What happened?"

"Concussion."

"Whatever! Fine!" Gar snapped. "It wasn't a street fight, if that makes you feel better. Cinderblock decided to crush a couple cars next to IHOP, okay?"

"Cinder…?" Understanding lit up Steve's face. "He's one of the freak villains around here, isn't he? That means _they_ were there…Gar, you _know_ you're not supposed to—"

"I know!"

"But you did, didn't you?"

"Yeeessss…"

"God, now we are definitely going for x-rays."

"_No_, I'm fine, just a little bruised—"

"That's what they always say, then it's discovered one of their lungs collapsed or something—"

"Trust me, I'd know if that happened, and I'm NOT going to a hospital, okay?"

"Right, but if you are hurt and we discover so later when there's no way we can fix it, rest assured that you are _grounded_ for the rest of your life."

"That's not fair."

"Yes it is."

Gar grumbled something inaudible, then sank low into his chair, burying his head into his arms.

Steve sighed. "Are the rest of the kids you were hanging out with okay?"

Gar lifted his head. "I think so. They all got out before I did."

"That's one less thing to worry about." Steve ran his hands through his hair. "I guess you should go get some rest. Why didn't you call me at a pay phone?"

"All I have is cash." Gar got up, taking the ice pack with him, and made his way towards his room.

"Right. At least you got free breakfast." Steve watched his son disappear into the hall, pausing in his thoughts. "Wait," he called as he heard Gar shut his door. "What did this have to do with girls?"

* * *

Gar moodily threw himself on the bed, feeling a mixture of emotions that he was beginning to think were becoming his favorite. He was pissed, upset, and bewildered, not to mention incredibly sore, with the added plus of having another Saturday morning ruined. He was starting to hate Saturdays…rolling onto his back and placing his hands beneath his head, he decided his new favorite day was Friday. Still part of the weekend, but so far with no lousy luck.

Staring up at the ceiling, Gar's thoughts migrated to a certain dark Goth-girl, one who gave him butterflies and black eyes. He gingerly brushed his left eyelid with a finger to be rewarded with a burst of fresh pain. He sat up and searched for the ice pack, finding near his pillow, and then returned to his former position, the ice pack on his eye. What he wouldn't _give_ to know what had been going on in Raven's mind from when she woke up from her fall to when she so generously blasted Gar away. Of course, he had been in Raven's mind before, Gar reminded himself, his face stretching into a grin. Now _that_ had been an interesting visit, one he hadn't forgotten and probably would never forget.

Then again, even with that revealing fumble, Raven seemed as mysterious and baffling as ever. Gar didn't think he'd ever be able to figure her out totally, with her abnormal mood swings. Gar's smile disappeared and was replaced with a boiling anger, not necessarily at Raven, but mostly at himself for playing the fool. He knew full well how Raven tended to be, showing absolutely no emotions one minute, usually followed by a grouchiness directed at anyone within an arm's length of her. Yet he had believed she would be thanking him all over the place, relieved to see him again, not the reaction of fear and irritation she had given him. He would've expected any of his old friends to be happy to see him, at least alive and well…but he couldn't jump on her, it was he who had stupidly ran out into the fighting, alone and unarmed, expecting something he should've known wouldn't come. Expecting something he should've known wouldn't come, that was one thing he could do rather well. Gar let out an annoyed groan—sometimes he could be such an idiot.

Sitting up and getting to his feet, Gar walked over to his window and looked out of it for a while, clutching the ice pack to his face and brooding over other times he had acted like a heroic twit…when he had tried to ask out and 'protect' Terra…the first time he tried to fight crime in a stupid move to prove that he was capable of taking care of himself—at least that turned into something worthwhile…_both_ times he had nearly gotten killed for his efforts. Shaking his head, Gar turned promptly from the window, tossing the ice pack on the bed and stripping from the waist up as he headed to the closet. Presently, his _back_ was killing him, being one black-and-green bruise. Gar opened the closet door, preparing to drop his new laundry into the pile of clothes he had deemed the dirty clothes pile, when froze with a frown on his face. He had finally gotten around to unpacking most of his stuff a couple days ago, his suitcase and boxes disappearing from the room, but there was one box Gar had shoved into his closet, a little afraid to tear the white, party-ballooned printed wrapping paper that covered it. He had found it with his stuff while they were unloading the helicopter, and had immediately read the note attached to it once he had gotten to his room. Realizing what type of gift it was, he had refused to open it, as if accepting the gift would b accepting his removal from the team.

Now, though, Gar bent down and brought the gift out, setting it in his lap on the bed and cautiously opening it. Once he had the wrapping paper off, he took off the lid of the box, to find tissue paper lining the inside of the box and cushioning four comic books, all encased in plastic sheet protectors. Gar stared at them, only reaching down and taking one of them fondly out of the box, disbelieve written on his face. "_Star_," he whispered, having no _idea_ how the alien had gotten hold of what he was holding: the first four issues of the _Doom Patrol_ comics, rare classics he had wanted since he had been a little kid, which all together probably cost over two or three hundred dollars.

Settling on his stomach with the first issue, Gar marveled over his last connection to the best times of his life.


	12. Part 2: One Too Many Enemies

**Author's Note:** YEAH! CHURCH CAMP ROX! hehe. i just came back from the best week of my life, WOOT. so. yeah. hope you guyz have had as much fun, i was extremely pleased to come back to an inbox full of review alerts…made my life perfect for a couple minutes. GRIN. anywayz, after watching the whole _The End_ saga that finished last Saturday on Teen Titans, and after much debate, i decided to include the whole 'it was the end of the world but the Titans managed to save it once again' thing. so Raven is still very reserved in her feelings, but now she isn't as afraid to show some emotion and she isn't quite as depressed. she is, however, now extremely protective of her life and her friends, which were almost taken away from her forever, something she wouldn't like to repeat. and yes, in my fanfic Slade regained his body and is still alive as happened in the third part. so thanx for your support once again, and here is the twelfth chapter with your personal replies below…

**DarkBeast: **you don't know _how_ glad i am to hear someone say that! i've been worried that i'm building up the relationship between them too slow, but i'm incredibly thrilled that you like the way i'm going…i'm aiming for tension, apprehension, and expectation!

**moonarcher: **YAY! you're back! yeah, you think the Titans would, but Cinderblock must've blocked they're vision…_or_…SMIRK. thanx for answering my question, it's steadied my confidence a tad!

**TDG3RD:** YAY! you're back too! don't feel bad about not reviewing, i was just worried i had lost some of my best advisers…GRIN. here's the next the chapter…

**dragoon-bane: **SNORT. you crack me up, man. and don't worry abut being obsessed, my sister hates watching Teen Titans with me now because every time Raven and Robin so much as give each other a funny look, i make rude noises with my mouth…GRIN.

**rikagirls** yepyep, and he'll see more of her soon…

**Anony**** Miss:** blushes awww, stop, you flatter me! i hope you stick around, though, i love morale boosters. GRIN.

**The Mad shoe1:** i'm keeping it, i'm uping it! … right, that made no sense. GRUMBLE

**Ninjamuffin13:** wanna know wat happens? keep reading!

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

* * *

**

The whole complex smelled musty, a dank feel to the air as a result of months, almost a year or two, with slow erosion and decaying of wood or concrete. Huge gears, at least the height of two men across and the height of five men high creaked on the ground or halfway disassembled from the ceiling. They were covered in cobwebs, rust illustrating cracks and dents where moisture slipped into the steel, their haunting shadows in the dim half-light, practically-dead emergency lights giving an eerie, ghost town feeling to the scene. Dislodged earth and rocks were scattered around the ground, and fissures decorated the cement walls and floors, a deep blackness yawning up from the pits of the earth, a hungry shadow. Splotches of green gave a bit of color to the grey and bleak picture, moss hanging off of cool, damp rocks, vines, weeds, and grass spurting from in between chinks and stretching from broken vents in the ceiling. Dust floated in the air, silence heavy and everything deserted.

Then, without warning, iron-clad footsteps filled the empty chambers, swelling horrendously to a climax before stopping swiftly, quieted by the examinations of their owner. A new figure flickered upon the old shadows, in the shape of a man, its build angular and muscular. The man himself blended in with the shadows, hidden from the meek light venturing into this abyss of darkness. His steps had been careful, testing as he made his way to where he stood now, before one of the clock work gears. His face was concealed behind a metal mask, half dirt orange and half black. He was dressed in a suit following this pattern, and his one visible eye surveyed the scene around him with an apathetic feeling of boredom, as if he'd rather be anywhere than here. But the man didn't leave, instead leaning lightly against the gear and acting as if he was settling in for a wait. He wouldn't have to wait long.

If anyone had been watching him, he would've been easily recognized. The veiled face, the two-colored suit, the iron-lined boots, the single, observing eye—all were plenty familiar to any citizens of Jump City, and especially familiar to a group of super-powered, crime-fighting teen heroes. If anyone had been watching him, he either would've heard a gasp of disbelief or the echo of running feet.

But as it happened, no one watched Slade unless he wanted them to.

The infamous criminal was, in fact, waiting for someone, a person that he knew would come. Someone that he had purposely let himself be discovered, someone he had purposely led in finding her personal goal. It was known Slade only concern himself with you if you had something he wanted, or if you had something he could use to his advantage—including yourself. This person had struck a deal with him; she had almost outsmarted him in the process, more than once almost gone too far, surprising him with her intelligence, focus, and edge. Slade had always recovered from her advances, though, and remained on top. It was risky, dealing with one so unpredictable as her, but her lack in creative goals made up for that, as well as her trend of having only one road she traveled: the one of revenge.

A scrape of metal on stone and the soft scattering of pebbles as someone made their way down into the crevice Slade was waiting in broke through Slade's thoughts, awakening all his body's senses and alarms to action, though he hardly twitched a muscle. He watched the ground in front of him for shifting shadows, his ears following the slight noises made while someone came up behind him. Gasps of breaths echoed against the crumbling walls, and Slade stayed motionless until the breathing was all but right behind him. Twisting sharply around, Slade's arm shot out and his hand caught the neck of the perpetrator. "You shouldn't try to sneak past me, Ragonu," Slade drawled as he stepped back into a beam of light, bringing his prisoner with him, a foot or so above the ground. But he frowned as he observed the kicking figure, one dressed in all black with a bike helmet of some sort on, a utility belt on its waist and a pack on its back. It wasn't Ragonu.

Without warning a hand clutched Slade's shoulder from behind, causing him to swerve around again just the hand disappeared and a woman's voice said innocently, "Sneaking? Now why would I need to do that?"

Sneering under his mask, Slade straightened himself as he came to a stop, the figure he was holding still squirming in his grip. In front of him stood the owner of the voice, smirking at the knowledge she had fooled Slade. Her pale, porcelain skin stood out shockingly against the harsh shadows surrounding her, though her curly, waist-length, raven-black hair and dark eyes hinted that once upon a time, she had been much darker than she appeared now. Like the figure Slade was clutching, the woman was dressed in black; a skin-tight, black jumpsuit to be exact, elegant curves and bends sure to attract men's attention if she walked out in public. A white lab coat flapped around her legs, that plus the huge high-heeled, knee length boots she wore making a mystery to Slade of how she had managed to surprise him once again. She might have been considered gorgeous if her rose-red lips weren't twisted permanently by smirks and sneers, nor her face distorted by an insane light.

Slade threw the distraction he had been holding to Ragonu's feet in disgust. "I see you brought your pet." The black figure scrambled up from its position and instantly backed into the shadows behind Ragonu, rubbing its neck. "I would think you above play toys."

Ragonu gave a cruel laugh, stepping forward. She was only about as tall as Slade's chest, but she held herself as if she looked down on everything and everybody in the world. "I always took to your sense of humor," she said lightly, tucking a lock of hair behind an ear. "But, unfortunately, we aren't here to trade jokes and gossip."

"No," Slade agreed, taking back his position against the gear he had had before Ragonu had shown up. "We're not. So enlighten me."

Ragonu glared at him, knowing that he knew exactly what they were here for. "Don't play games with me, bastard," she said lowly, stepping forward some more. "I have the boy out of your way. Now I want what I came for."

"What you want?" Slade _tsked_ her, shaking his head and bringing out an envelope from behind his back. "Dear, is that a way to ask?" He held the envelope up, gazing at it and watching Ragonu's balled fists from the corner of his eye, wondering with slight fascination what she would do. This situations were most exciting…sometimes she would cleverly talk her way in and out of messes, other times she would brutally attack, striking like a snake. There were more 'other times' too, all completely random, but usually based on her wants and needs.

This time, she chose the fast way. Darting forward, Ragonu made a nimble grab for the envelope, but Slade was ready. He grabbed her waist and pulled her close just as she passed by him, the envelope disappearing as he wrapped his arms around her, snickering. "Ah ah, love." Slade saw her pet leap out of the shadows, and quickly spun her around tango-like so she came to a rest facing her stock-still pet, her body pressing into his, one hand of his hands on her stomach, the other one under her chin, ready to jerk her neck up and over, snapping it easily. "I have my own wants, too."

She gave an aggressive, animal-type growl in her throat, Slade letting her break away from him. She gave him another withering glare, taking a slip of paper out of her jumpsuit as she straightened herself. She held it wordlessly out to Slade, who took them from her and reviewed them with one eye, the other trained on Ragonu and her pet, who was edging back into the shadows.

"These are all of them?" he asked almost anxiously. "All the prison codes?"

Ragonu nodded curtly, holding her hand out for the envelope. It appeared in Slade's hands again, the piece of paper Ragonu had given him disappearing in turn. He started to hand it to her, then in a lightening-quick action, gripped Ragonu's wrist and pulled her close one more time. Her pet bounded out of the shadows, but a smoke pellet erupted in front of the two villains, cutting them from sight. Inside the smoke, Slade slipped the envelope into her hand as she struggled in his strong clutch, whispering dangerously in her ear, "They better be. I do hate revisiting. Especially when I'm displeased, because…" Starting at her hips, Slade traced one of his fingers up Ragonu's body until he reached her neck, where he gave a single, sharp cutting move across her neck. His meaning couldn't have been clearer. And with that, he was gone.

Ragonu didn't wait for the smoke to dissipate, ignoring the shivers running up and down her spine and ripping into the envelope. She froze for a minute, her features unreadable. Then, her face slowly split into a wide, wild grin as she reached into the envelope and lifted out a diminutive, blood-red disk, barely larger than her thumbnail. The smoke was a gray mist, painting Ragonu's form in a breath-taking silhouette. A deep, bubbling laughter started at the bottom of her chest, growing louder as it rose until it burst from Ragonu's mouth in maniacal, frightening explosive shrieks, the laugh of a _true_ mad rogue.


	13. Part 2: Paparazi Effects

**Author's Note:** i am desperately sorry i was so _late_ this time. and i'm afraid it might be stop-and-go with updates for the rest of this story. I'M SO SORRY! see, i've been really busy these last couple of weeks, with band camp, youth sunday at church, plus getting back to school! AACK! let me tell you, playing instruments and dragging drums back and forth in the seriously hot sun all day from eight in the morning to nine at night is NOT COOL. and with me having started school last week—yes, _last_ _week_—without having finishing my summer work yet is DOUBLY NOT COOL. so yeah. things've been hectic, and probably will be for the rest of this school year. homework every night _already_…yeesh. O.O i've also been running into some personal issues that have yet to be resolved, the reason for belief of stop-and-go updates…. but i am very pleased with this chapter, though it did take time i _didn't_ have to write. GNAH. i do believe that you guys will like this chapter as well. hopefully. also, the fact that one day i opened up my inbox to find _twelve_ review alerts? yeah, that made me so happy i scared myself. heh. keep up the encouragement! and here are your replies to that encouragement:

**Mako****-Magic:** you wonder if i made bb's 'normal' appearance up? well, this is not the first time making Beast Boy normal has popped into the mind of someone somewhere at sometime (though at the moment i came up with the idea i thought i was brilliant and it hadn't been attempted before. then i rethunk, realizing comics do crazy on a regular basis). to tell you the truth, the comics have already done it like five times…so based on the pictures of Beast Boy when he was little and in those instances of normality from the comics, i drew up a picture suiting to me and as close as possible to the original images of him. i have to say, i'm rather fond of redheads, thus the redheadiness…GRIN.

**bubba:** i wrote more but i'm afraid it was a little too late. O.o

**Hell Boy:** AHEM, ifi told you that there'd be no point in you reading the rest of the story! slacker…heh, JK!

**dancingirl3: **i'm hoping for more bb/rae fluffiness, but Rae is awful hard to convince on that part sometimes…and i'm not to fond of her angry side….

**Slade's Downfall:** THANK YOU, thank you! i'd like to mention all the little ppl i used as stairs to get to where i am now…hehe, no really, i LUV it when i get reviews like yours!

**TDG3RD:** wondering and guessing are good signs for me!

**DarkBeast: **i can say titans are in this one, buddy, so i hope you like this chapter better if you read it!

**moonarcher: **i'm good at planning, and yeah, i've heard a few rumors about season five, some believable and some way too crazy for Cartoon Network shows. heh. and, yes, Doom Patrol was one of the rumors i heard, but i didn't know about it until after i wrote the comments about them in chapter 11. WEIRD.

**dragoon-bane: **woo. wow. know what couple you're for, mate. GRIN.

**Savi: **i'm glad chapter ten's your favorite, sorry about the late update, i luv bb/rae stories too, there'll be more fun between them, and they're not supposed to contact him. secret identity junk.

FORGIVE TYPOS. There are probably a lot...

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**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

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**

"HA! I _knew_ something was up with them!"

Gar let out a soft groan as Kassie's shout of excitement woke him from his half-sleep, a slam on the table he was using as an uncomfortable makeshift pillow jarring his head. He slit open his eyes only to immediately shut them against the sharp white light shining through the cracks of his arms, with which he had been attempting to cushion his face against.

"I don't see what's so funny about that," Michael grumbled, shifting next to Gar and rattling the table again. Gar squeezed his eyes shut tighter, wishing everyone would just stop _moving_.

Gar heard Kassie give a disgruntled sigh, and if he had been watching, Gar was sure she would be rolling her eyes at their lack of interest. "Oh, you're hilarious," she spat at Michael. Gar felt someone flick his arm as she continued, "Gar, you gotta see this, I picked it up while walking to school."

"Kassie, it's a _tabloid_," Gar heard Michael say. "You know how dependable those things are."

Kassie sniffed, Gar raising his head out of his arms at the last retort, one side of his face cool and red from where it had been pressing against the table. Michael was leaning around his shoulder, gazing at what Kassie had slammed down in front of Gar. "Some of them _can_ be dependable, especially on local or big stori—whoa, what the hell is _that_?"

Kassie was staring at Gar's black-and-blue left eye, having caught sight of it when he raised his head. Gar ignored her, letting his eyes adjust for a minute to the bright lights of Jump City High School's cafeteria. It was the Monday after Gar's little adventure with Raven and Adonis, and his back was _killing_ him. He had slept through most of the rest of Saturday and Sunday, anytime he woke up too stiff or sore to move lightly. He had felt no better this morning when his alarm clock went off, though his eye had stopped throbbing and was now only aching dully. Steve had insisted he go to school, telling Gar his injuries had been his own fault and he should accept responsibility. Gar also got the feeling that Steve wanted him out of the house due to company from work, and that his door would be securely shut when he came home. So Gar had gone to school with intentions to sleep through most of his classes, but found with disappointment Carson's door locked, forcing him to make attempts at sleeping in the cafeteria amidst screams, shouts, shrieks of laughter, and the constant buzz of conversation. Michael had joined him shortly after he had managed to doze off, waking him, and now Kassie had just interrupted his second effort to fall asleep. Therefore, Gar wasn't in the best of moods, to put it nicely.

"Gar decided to run in the opposite direction everyone else was running in last Saturday. Got taught a lesson, I suppose," Michael explained to Kassie in response to her comment, stretching and settling back into the original position he had been in before Kassie arrived, face-down on his history textbook. A small pool of wetness blurred some of the inked words on the page Michael had it opened to, right were Michael's mouth had been minutes before. Gar suspected Michael hadn't gotten very far on memorizing the dates of important events in the Cold War.

Kassie raised an eyebrow and studied Gar while he scowled at Michael, whose eyes were starting to droop again. "Right," she said, watching Gar as he began to wrap his head in his arms again. Then her face lit up and she continued excitedly as she sat down across the table from Gar, "Wait, does that mean that you actually went by the _fighting?_ Did you see—"

But Gar suddenly froze, his eyes widening as he unfolded his arms, having caught sight of the tabloid cover. Gar snatched the tabloid off the table, interrupting the beginning of what would've most likely become an interrogation, and held it in front of his face, staring at it with disbelieve. For written in black, bold, gothic-print letters across an enlarged picture of what Gar recognized all too well as an action pose of the Teen Titans—with _him_ still in it—was:

**B****EAST BOY:HASTHELITTLE GREENELFGONEFROMHEROTO _ZERO?_**

In a corner of the cover, a picture of his face was posted, a large question mark in place instead of his eyes, nose and mouth. Gar stared at the cover for what seemed like an eternity, his mind racing, clutching the tabloid so hard his knuckles were beginning to turn white. Of course he had been ready for some publicity; the Titans couldn't keep his disappearance from the team forever, but it still shocked him to see _his_ face on a tabloid featuring a story about _him_, old hurt and memories surfacing at the sight of _all_ the Titans together like that, in the picture.

"Gar?"

Kassie's voice was hesitant, causing him to pull the cover down slowly to where he could see her face. She was watching him carefully as he did so, her arms crossed on the table, curiosity and worry reflected in her eyes. He stared at her for a minute, slowly releasing the death grip he had on the tabloid and then glanced quickly at Michael, who had propped his head up on a hand, a puzzled expression etched onto his face as well. Clearing his throat quietly, Gar turned back to Kassie and asked in a strange voice that sounded too calm yet strained to be his own, "Where…did you get this?"

Kassie furrowed her brow, and answered slowly, "They're all over the city, sold in stores and on newspaper stands. This story was even on the front page of the paper today, like almost anything that has to do with the Titans…the article starts on page nine. Is…everything okay, Gar?"

She asked this last question with more suspicion and less bafflement as Gar swiftly turned the pages until he reached page nine, almost tearing a few in the process. "Yeah, sure," Gar mumbled absently as he focused on the article. Michael put his head back down on his textbook, apparently dismissing Gar's odd behavior. Kassie wasn't as easily satisfied, narrowing her eyes a tad. Gar was too busy scanning to notice. A few pictures of him before the whole bomb thing decorated the columns on the page, from blurry ones of him eating pizza with the other Titans, to poses of him with the rest of the Titans after a good fight or him actually caught in mid-action _during_ a fight. All zoomed in on him. Gar had always dreamed of being popular to and admired by the general public while he…was…a Teen Titan—but he had never bothered to look in the paper or news for proof of those dreams coming true, and now he felt kind of violated with pictures he hadn't even _known_ of being broadcast.

A headline of, '**Green Teen Hero** **Absences Finally Noted**'ran across the top of the page, the corner dog-eared by Kassie. It read:

_'Last Saturday morning, Jump City's famous group of teen justice-heroes, the Teen Titans, managed yet again to arise victorious from trading blows with the two infamous criminals Cinderblock and Adonis…with one exception to their normal fighting techniques: the green shape-shifter known as Beast Boy was missing from their ranks._

_Reportedly the youngest and quickly becoming the most well-known member, Beast Boy was the third to join the Teen Titans while recruiting was occurring, and has been a proud part of the team since its rise to fame. But from the tourists to the residents of __Jump__City__, all have started to ask the same question: Where is our little green friend?_

_Eye-witnesses of Titan battles have been wondering about this point as early as two to three weeks ago, however. "Yeah, I don't see the squirt around much anymore," stated Max Gilkan, age 41, resident of __Jump__City__. "I was wandering by a bank couple days ago, and the Titans were there stopping a robbery—but I didn't see no green critters running around the place, if you know what I mean."_

_Gilkan hasn't been the only one to notice Beast Boy's lack of presence, either. Many who follow the Titan's activities closely have also noticed, as well as plain citizens who care about the safety of their city. "The last time I saw him was, like, three weeks ago, at __Main Street__'s collapse," recounted Tiffany Valigo, age 17, resident of __Jump__City__. "I really haven't seen anything of him since." Tourists too feel the loss of one Teen Titan member. "I came here to see the Teen Titans," said Mike Hughes, a current tourist spending his spring break in __Jump__City__, "and I'm seeing them one member short, stumbling over each other to keep criminals in check. Not breezing through fights like everyone says they do." Hughes's wife felt more concerned: "I just hope the poor boy isn't hurt—crime-fighting is a nasty business, from what I hear."_

_Authorities claim everything is under control, however, and urge the public not to worry for their safety. "All we can share is that he is secure and unharmed," Mayor John Tarris admitted at a small press conference. "The Teen Titans are quite capable of handling the city even if they are a member short, and will keep doing so." The Law Enforcement Department of Jump City is behind the mayor in his statements, though more than a few individuals within the organization have reluctance and doubts. "Something shady seems to be going on, I think," one quoted, whose name he wished not to be disclosed. "Some private-eyes are working on their own to see if they can find out what's going on, I heard—trying to dig up dirt on the Titans, prolly, with politics and everything." And rumors like these are beginning to fly, with whispers of kidnappings and sabotages to bring unruly metahumans under government control—' _

"Hello? Helllloooo? Earth to Gar!"

Gar's concentration on the article was broken into as he realized Kassie had been speaking to him. He now looked at her over the top of the tabloid again, a frustrated look on her face. Michael was snickering into his hand, and the only thing Gar could think to say was a spectacular, "Huh?"

Kassie rolled her eyes, throwing up her hands, while Michael continued his unsuccessfully hidden laughter. "I asked you if you were even _listening_, which you apparently weren't!" At Michael she growled, "And you shut up."

"Erm, sorry," Gar apologized, not very sincerely. He started to scan the rest of the story, seeing he had stopped reading right when it started sounding like a tabloid, with absurd accusations against the government and the Titans. Next there was a section on Beast Boy's history, concerning wild theories and stories about his birth to his joining of the Teen Titans, all of which were wrong. Kassie started speaking again as he kept on glancing through the paragraphs.

"I was asking you if you had seen Beast Boy during your little parade in the wrong direction on Saturday, to see if everyone's right." The next section was on government plots concerning super-heroes; they seemed all to be very far-fetched and beside the point. Some of them were _extremely_ interesting…

"You can't always believe everything the press says, I have to admit—shut up, Michael, tabloids need reporters which do to make tabloids the press!" Gar practically blanched at the next topic: various speculations and completely random, untrue of his facts regarding his freaking _love-life_. This was _definitely_ a tabloid.

"I thought something was off with them, you know, ever since a couple weeks ago at the Main Street collapse—"

Gar halted in the middle of turning a page and looked up at her, catching Kassie's last sentence. "Whoa," he intelligently blurted, "you were _there_?"

Looking pleased to have struck a note of Gar's attention, but at the same time annoyed by his lack thereof before, Kassie heaved a sigh. "_Yes_, I was there…Well, actually, not _there_ when the street collapsed, but I was nearby—I was hanging out at the mall with Michael and some other guys, and we decided to go down to a café shop near Main Street. We were walking down to the café when there was a huge cloud of smoke that came from about a block over, and genius _Michael_ here got up and sprinted as fast as he could directly at it—"

"Hey, hey!" Michael exclaimed, rising from his comfortable position, appearing quite awake. "Don't bash me for disappearing! John had gone over in that direction, and I did my good deed that day! Helped a pretty beat-up guy outta the sewer—don't ask me what he was doing down there—and had the added plus of talking to that cute redhead on the Titans…what's her name? Started with an 'S'…"

"Starfire?" Gar suggested, earning a curious look from Kassie as Michael gave an excited nod. And Gar had the same nagging feeling he had had when he first met Michael, of familiarity…but that would've been impossible…like slim chance.

"Yeah! That was her! Absolute _hottie_, I'd go anywhere with her any day," Michael said dreamily.

Gar grinned, laughing inside for reasons only he would get. Kassie snorted through her nose. "She's an alien," she stated plainly. "But why have you never told _me_ about this before?"

Michael looked at Kassie, dreaminess gone and his face suddenly lit up, like someone remembering a lost memory. "Wait a second, you know what? The chick was actually asking around for Beast Boy! I remember now, she started harassing this man after asking me for a minute…God, she was cute—"

"Are you saying you think Beast Boy went missing at the Main Street collapse?"

"I dunno," Michael answered, yawning. "Just saying. You're the one whose obsessed with the Titans."

"I am not obsessed with them! I just like to know what's going on in the city. Got to, if I'm planning to become a reporter someday."

"Yeah, sure, getting every freaking tabloid, magazine, or newspaper that applies to the Titans, visiting forums and shrines online dedicated to them, trying to start a fan club for the leader, and hoping to catch a glimpse of them everyday is not obsessed."

"I do _not_ visit online shrines! I don't even have Internet connection at my house! And the fan club was when I was, like, eleven years old. Middle-school girls do that stuff. Besides, you're little less than obsessed with the girls on that team. Perv."

"What! It's not _my_ fault they're gorgeous! I mean, who _doesn't_ like redhead babes dressing in miniskirts and halter tops every day? And that Goth chick? Could you find a better set of curves and bad-ass attitude than she has? That leotard looks freaking _fantastic_ on her—"

"Oooookay," Gar interjected, his face suddenly seeming warm while he felt like punching Michael in the nose. "Dude, that's _seriously_ enough."

Kassie gave Michael a disgusted glare. "Like I said: perv."

Michael chuckled and smirked, returning her glare with a side-ways glance. "I know a certain _somebody_ who thinks you wouldn't look too bad yourself in halter tops and miniskirts yourse-elf…"

Kassie blushed vividly and muttered under her breath, "Dumbass."

Gar scratched his head and gave a mental shrug, not following at all what Michael said. Then Kassie turned to Gar and asked eagerly, the blush fading from her cheeks, "Well? Did you?"

Gar stared at her blankly, the tabloid still in his hands. "Did I what?"

Michael shook with laughter at either Kassie's abrupt change of subject or Gar's confusion, while Kassie closed her eyes and sighed. "Did you see Beast Boy last Saturday or not?" she asked slowly, clearly trying not to snap.

"Oh!" Gar remembered, his mind nervously racing to find the right answer. He had never been excellent at hiding things. "Uhh…no, actually, I didn't," he answered, exerting all his effort to keep his voice casual-sounding. "Nope, I didn't, but you know, I was kinda busy trying not to get _crushed_…"

Kassie thoughtfully rubbed her cheek. "That's something to think about…"

"The fact Gar didn't see Beast Boy or that he was trying not to get crush—OW!"

Michael angrily rubbed his nose where Kassie had swatted it, scooting further away from Gar so Kassie couldn't reach him across the table as she just had.

Making no signs of what she had just done, besides smugly smiling, Kassie's thoughts seemed to zoom in on Gar without warning. "Say…what were you thinking, running into a fight like that anyway? Anyone with common sense would've followed the crowd and run away from it all."

"Then maybe I don't have common sense," Gar proposed, realizing a split second later that his clever attempt to escape Kassie's question didn't work as planned. "Wait…I meant—"

Michael chortled as Kassie grinned and laughed. "Genius. Now, really, why didn't you?" Kassie insisted.

"I…just saw someone I knew out there, and—instincts, I guess," Gar replied truthfully.

"Like me and John, at the Main Street collapse! See?" Michael triumphantly declared. Then he faltered. "But, well, I didn't exactly _see_ him, but still—"

"But I thought you just moved here," Kassie continued, ignoring Michael.

"That…well, that…" Gar stumbled over his words. "Actually, I was here about a week before I came to Jump High. So that doesn't mean I didn't meet anyone before you guys," Gar finished confidently.

"Really? Who was it?"

Gar subconsciously gulped, searching for a reasonable answer. "I—umm…it was—" His eyes fell on the tabloid in front of him. "—this girl named Tiffany! Yeah, she…lives in the apartment building I live at. She's…actually moving away in a couple days." Gar played with the idea, stretching it to cover other questions he might later be asked in a very wise, unlike-him move. "She showed me around Jump City, you know, took me to places and stuff. Home-schooled, so she had time to hang out with me during the week."

There was a pause while Kassie went over his story in her mind, which Michael brought to an end with a hopeful, "Is she hot?"

"Is that all you ever think about?" Kassie asked, glaring at him yet again. Michael shrugged, closing his history book and sliding into his book bag, pulling out a half-eaten PopTart from a pocket somewhere.

Kassie gave Gar a 'can-you-believe-him' look as she took the tabloid from its spot in front of Gar, folding it back so she could see the cover snapshot of the Titans again. "I'd like to think I'm not obsessed with them," she grumbled to no one in particular. "Just so much depends on them…"

Gar adjusted his backpack on the chair beside him, interested. "What do you mean?" he asked innocently.

It seemed as if Kassie was waiting for someone to ask that, launching instantly into an explanation. "It's pretty scary, sometimes—a city full of top-notch technology from places like Wayne Enterprises or S.T.A.R.R labs, military officials, some of the best investigators, and the best Law Enforcement Bureau around has to depend on five super-powered _teenagers_ for protection. If someone got rid of those kids, we'd all be in hell five seconds later because the damn lunatics they throw in jail all the time would be loose in two seconds! Our top-notch technology is as easily available to the bad guys as it is to us, and all our firepower _nothing_ if we don't have a freak show looking after us…no offense to the Titans," she added hastily, after saying all this very rapidly and pretty much one breath. "And now one of them goes missing, everyone who knows something refusing to say _anything_ about it. Makes you kind of worried. If they're trying hard to keep the public population calm when we're more curious than upset, we _should_ be nervous at least. Especially if the group we depend on for security is more than nervous."

"……"

Gar's mouth had inched slightly open during Kassie's long-winded theory, and now he swiftly closed it, still absorbing all she had said. She had definitely read into the situation more than _he_ had ever done, even when he was a _part_ of the situation. He could see Robin wanting to keep Gar's whole dilemma a secret, or half a secret, for unwanted publicity on both the Titan's and Gar's part. But Kassie had just explained most, if not all, of the big picture to Gar: there was a criminal or villain or vigilante or insane idiot or _someone_ out there that had reversed if not completely eliminated a virus that had resided firmly in Gar's body since he was a toddler—a feat scientist and genealogists had been trying to accomplish for years, and not only on Gar. Not to mention that in the same act, a whole street collapsed in on itself and whoever had set off the radiation in the first place escaped with at least two Titans hot on his or her trail; something that had basically only been achieved by one criminal in Titan history…Slade.

So yeah, Gar could see where Kassie was coming from.

Michael gave a low whistle. "Wow…at least they're trying though, right?"

Kassie slipped the tabloid into her back pocket, nodding. "I wonder if they're gonna get a replacement."

Gar sat up straight, banging his elbow on the table. "_What?_"

The shrill calling of the warning bell echoed through the school, accompanied by the huge scraping of chairs as students got up from their tables, chattering as they made their way to class. Michael and Kassie rose too, swinging their backpacks onto their shoulders and getting ready to join the mass of people heading towards the cafeteria exits. Gar followed suit, though a little late, and got level with Kassie.

"A replacement," she repeated as soon as he could hear her. "To help with the balance of things if the 'green elf' doesn't have plans to come back from wherever he is."

Gar missed a step at this, falling behind Michael and Kassie. The looming feeling of dejection filled Gar, a feeling he was becoming way too used to for his liking, as he stumbled to catch up with them. His brain must be getting slow or something…nowadays, everything was bad news he should've foreseen.

* * *

The day in Jump City was fair—a robin-blue sky, with puffy, snow-white clouds lolling across it. Rays of sunshine glittered on glass skyscrapers and black-gray asphalt, a slight breeze keeping the day warm enough to comfortably go swimming yet cool enough to lay in the sun unharassed. The streets were traffic free, with late commuters scurrying down sidewalks though they were in no real hurry. Side cafés and bookstores were busy, though not unbearably so, with resident adults free of children and teens, who were at school, and most tourists, still asleep in their beds. The Titan Tower gleamed in the distance over the bay, but there was no need for its occupants at the moment. All in all, it was the kind of Monday that even Monday-haters couldn't hate.

A petite, brunette woman was gazing serenely at the street in front of her from the round café table she sat at, sipping a cup of coffee with a shopping bag from Mel's Books beside her. Long curls played across her face in the small breeze, the sun's gentle caress warming her legs. The morning's daily newspaper was laid on the table in eye's view, open to the classified section. The lady was quite content: she had no where to be until eleven o'clock, her hair was in the exact fashion she wanted, her coffee was not burnt, she had bought a book she had been looking at for weeks at half-price, and her make-up was perfect. She gave a contented sigh as a tiny convertible zoomed quietly by on the street. Nothing could possibly go wrong.

Then, without warning, an orange-yellowish blur passed before her in the blink of an eye, turning of the chair opposite of the woman and wobbling the café table treacherously. The woman's curls whipped into her face, wrapping around her head and sailing in all directions, as if a fierce gale had went by; which wasn't all that unbelievable. The steam rising from her coffee that had been rising so placidly moments before was gone, extinguished, snuffed out of existence like a candle flame. The pages of the newspaper that was on the table flipped rapidly for several seconds, slowing and coming to a rest at the front page again, a snapshot picture of a certain green teenage hero at the top. The brunette woman was frozen in shock, the coffee cup mid-way to her mouth, staring directly across the street with blank eyes.

_What the—!_

Bart Allen snorted as he glanced back to see the woman he had passed jump up from her seat right before her form disappeared in little more than a blink of an eye. Buildings and cars flashed by Bart, brilliant flares of colors and light. He looked ahead just in time to change direction for the split second it took to avoid collision with an oblivious eighty-year-old woman, making way slowly on her cane. Dodging a few more obstacles at lightening speed, more than likely even faster than that, Bart continued to make his way through downtown Jump City…no, wait...making a severely sharp turn, he was suddenly blurring alongside Jump City's piers. Squinting against the harsh wind whipping past his face, Bart saw what had been the faint outline of the Titan Tower grow swiftly very clear, not surprising him in the least. Ready, Bart waited until he drew level with the Tower, then banked another sudden, sharp turn…straight onto the water.

Spray encased his feet as they literally flew across the water, echoing his movements as a trail of white marked his path milliseconds before. The spray hadn't even spurted up all the way before Bart was a good twenty yards off. Bart gave a loud laugh, snatched by inhuman speed from his mouth immediately as it made its debut—he was a super-speed Jesus! Almost as soon as he had thought that, rock-hard ground met his feet again, causing his eyes to widen slightly as he dug his heels into the ground before he flew through the base of the Tower, or past it, for that matter.

His head jerked with the force of the stop he had attempted to make, rattling his teeth—_attempted_ because the rest of his body didn't exactly agree with the no-speed policy his feet had just implied…leaving him face-first on the ground. After a quick minute, Bart jumped up again, dusting himself off and facing out towards the bay. The last of the foamed trail he had left was fading from sight, dust thrown up from his contact to land making him sneeze. He turned back around and craned his neck, gazing up at the monstrous construction in front of him. It loomed up into the sky, sun glancing off its teal-grey steel and dark blue panels, against the light blue morning sky. Bart continued surveying it for a second, his gaze falling from the top levels of the Tower to the base. Bart scratched his head, then zipped up to the base to stare at the navy wall before him. He walked back in forth in front of it, taking his time to observe it. After glancing behind him and to the sides, Bart quickly zoomed around the Tower once to no avail to what he was looking for. Stopping where he had first walked up to, Bart gave an annoyed sigh.

_Guess I should've asked where the front door was._

Bart examined the wall in front of him again in hopes of catching something he had missed earlier. And he wasn't disappointed. Near the left side of the wall, placed about shoulder-length to a person of average height, was a rectangular silver-finished panel around hand with and length. Squinting at it curiously, Bart raised his hand and tapped it extremely in, well, super-speed. After waiting for a few minutes, Bart did it once more. Nothing happened. Shrugging, Bart placed his hand full on the silver panel, pushing slightly on it in hopes of a door-bell effect. Nothing happened. Irritated and believing his troop out here was for nothing, Bart heaved a sigh and started to remove his hand—when something suddenly _did_ happen.

The panel glowed bright, neon blue for about three seconds, warming Bart's palm with a practically inaudible buzzing noise. Alarmed, Bart snatched his hand away—but for all his speed, not before a zap of the blue light traced the outline of a huge, rectangular set of doors. Not sure of what he had just done, Bart positioned himself in a pose to flee if anything dangerous decided to blow towards him. But…nothing happened.

Bart slowly, for a change, turned back to the Tower and cautiously walked up to the outlined doors until his nose was literally touching metal. Running a finger across the metal door, Bart looked around for a handle of any kind, but failing to find one took both his hands and pushed with all his might against the doors. They might as well have been a steel whale, though, for the lack of movement Bart managed to produce. Ready to admit the time he had wasted in coming, Bart slumped his shoulders and turned towards the bay to take off home after waiting at least five minutes for…you guessed it…something to happen. Grumbling under his breath in disappointment, Bart was about to take a step into hyper-speed when all of a sudden, a loud click sounded from the direction of the doors. Startled, Bart jumped and swerved around once more, to see one of the doors beginning to creak open.

Moving closer to the door with every inch it opened, Bart was standing directly in front of it by the time it stopped moving. Pitch black darkness emitted from the small gap between the doors, just big enough for a person to peek in or out of. Unsure of whether to go in or not, Bart leaned further towards the door, almost leaning inside the gap, and squinted into the darkness in an effort to see inside against the bright, pale light of the morning sun—and jumped what could've been a foot in the air as he was able to make out a pair of large, owl-like navy-blue eyes blinking at him. Backing up in haste, Bart realized a girl about his age was standing in the doorway, dressed in a leotard and blue cape, hood covering most of her face. Shadows cloaked most of her figure as she leaned against the door, blocking the way inside with her body. A belt of rubies or something of another glowed faintly around her hips, accenting her rather plain outfit.

"What do you want?"

It took a minute for Bart to realize it was the girl who had spoken in such a droning voice, surprising him a little. He continued to survey her, determining she was who he thought she was. At this decision, he gave a friendly, kind of idiotic grin, and held up a newspaper he had been clutching in one of hands the whole time: the current day's newspaper, with the story of the disappeared Teen Titan on front as all the others. He nodded his head at the Tower and Raven. "Thought you guys could use a bit of help," he chirped in his best nonchalant voice, looking to impress.

Raven took in his cheerfully poised figure, attired in a full-body spandex-like suit, covering his whole…well, body, with the exception of his cinnamon-gold eyes, mouth and brown hair spilling over onto his forehead. Red miniature wings, like the ones known to the Roman messenger god of Hermes, were perched on each side of his head, precisely where his ears would've been if the suit wasn't covering them. A gold lightening-bolt insignia decorated his chest, matching the orange-gold of the suit around it. The bottom of the suit was bright red, however, as well as the elbow-length gloves. Decked-out combat boots reverted back to the gold color; there was something strange in the design of the boots, but Raven couldn't put her finger on it. All in all, the boy looked like some kind of vigilante crime-fighter, though Raven had never seen him around Jump City. The lightening bolt nudged at something at the back of her mind, though.

So Raven took Bart's appearance in as he stood there with newspaper held up, heart thumping with anticipation…and then the metal door promptly slammed in his face.

Bart stared at the metal face of the door for a couple minutes, stunned at the pure insolence of the action, wind off the bay whipping brown strands of hair across his nose. Defeated, Bart's whole disposition suddenly collapsed in bleakness as a huge sigh rippled through his body. And he thought he would've at least been taken seriously. Wondering if he still had enough time to get to school before he was _too_ tardy, Bart turned to run off…when the door opened yet again.

Thoroughly irritated by now, Bart swung around to face who he thought was the Gothic girl-hero, and blurted, "Make up your _mind_ all ready!" firmly into the face of the Teen Titans' leader.

Bart froze as soon as the words left his mouth, dreading the fact that he might have just ruined any chance he had of joining the Titans. His flushing face thankfully hid behind his mask, Bart sheepishly watched Robin as he received two death-glares: one from Raven, who has hidden in the shadows behind Robin, and one from the Boy Wonder himself. Bart gave a small smile and rubbed his neck. "Heh…fancy that, I thought you weren't…erm, you," Bart apologized lamely.

Robin continued glaring. "I don't know what you're talking about," he more or less growled. He shot a look at Raven over his shoulder, and then focused his attention back on Bart. "Is this true? You're interested in joining the Titans?" Robin's voice was hard and distant, almost a little suspicious.

Bart shrugged. "You could say that, but seeing the papers and stuff, I figured it wouldn't hurt you guys to welcome someone else on board—"

"How do you know the 'papers and stuff' are true? You take anything anyone tells you in a stride?"

Taken aback, Bart blinked. "Uhh…I'd like to think not, but I just figured—"

Robin stopped him with a hand, surveying his costume. "Never mind—you're wearing the symbol of Flash, Justice League. His colors, too. Care to explain?"

Bart absently looked down at his chest. "Let's just say me and him and tight." He crossed his fingers and held them up for emphasis. Robin just stared.

"So you're a vigilante?"

"Something of the sort."

"Why haven't we heard of you?"

"I haven't made myself known."

"And that's why you want to join the team."

"I guess. I've just been waiting around for a good time."

"And you think since we're missing a member—not that we are—you can step in and take his place?"

"Er…when you say it like that—"

"So that's it then?"

"No! I mean—"

"What if we aren't missing a member and we don't need your help?"

"_Dammit_, are you always so _difficult_?"

"You didn't answer—"

"Fine, FINE! Cut the crap, now I know full well the Beast kid really is gone…and I wasn't planning on taking his place, alright? It just seemed like you could use some help nowadays, seeming as how you're being whipped in the ass repeatedly by criminals you used to throw in jail without a hitch. So I'm offering my hand. I don't even have to be a permanent member, just a temporary one, if you want."

Bart's face was red by the time he finished his little speech, waiting expectantly for Robin's reply. He was standing in the doorway, Raven a few inches behind him, watching Bart carefully with piercing navy-blue eyes. Robin's face was stone as he absorbed what Bart had said for a few moments, but Bart got the feeling he was fighting some kind of inner-battle with himself or something. Bart squinted his eyes a tad in a scrutinizing fashion. Raven and Robin both seemed to be a little too still for his comfort, the silence stretching for quite a while. Then, as spontaneously as Robin had ceased talking, his hand twitched and jaw locked as he seemed to comprehend Bart was still standing there. Robin opened the metal door to its entire entry swing, letting Bart see the first glimpse of the inside of the Titan Tower he had ever seen. Robin stepped forward, holding out his hand. "Guess there's nothing to lose," he said evenly, and a bit friendlier, though Bart was certain Robin wasn't about to clap him on the back and welcome him to the club. Raven levitated suddenly and disappeared up a set of metal stairs. Robin ignored her departure. "If you'll just follow me to the Titan's operations room, … ?"

Bart realized Robin was waiting for his name. Or codename, that is. "Kid Flash," Bart said, smiling and shaking Robin's hand. "Unoriginal, but the name's Kid Flash."


	14. Part 2: The Last of Security

**Author's Note: **wow. there are no words to describe way freaking late i was in getting up this chapter—well, besides five months late. O.o SRRY! so yeah, about the Titans show as of now? SERIOUSLY _pissing me off!_ i mean, i think it's cool what they're doing right now, with all the new heroes and revists to comic-lore, it's actually fantastic…but these new episodes are all part of my FABULOUS, UN-THOUGHT OF IDEAS FOR OTHER FANFICS! errgh. like kid flash? yeah, i totally had that first…and i was going to do one where the doom patrol came back! even one when starfire and robin first met and began the team! FRUSTRATION. ah, well, for some things you just can't be fast enough…

anywayz, this is my xmas present to all who wanted one from me…sorry i'm flat-out broke…happy holidays!

(i didn't proofread, so sorry in advance if there's any atrocious mistakes…FINAL EXAMS SUCK. yeah.)

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

"Hurry up, man, this is last fucking place I wanna be seen right about now!"

"Ah, stop your bitchin', I'm almost done…"

Two black figures stood inside the main security room at California's most advanced and first-rate containment area for the most maniacal and madman criminals of the state, low red lights flashing through the room as well as the hallways outside, a faint screeching alarm sounding throughout the compound. The red lights flashed reflections on the dull, lifeless eyes of the four guards that had been on duty, their limp bodies piled neatly a few meters away from the door. The two men to whom the voices belonged to were clad in all black, ski masks covering each of their heads, with an exception of their eyes and mouths. One was bending over the main computer console, typing furiously with one hand and holding a small slip of paper in the other, while his partner stood anxiously at the door, skimming the camera displays of the compound as the employees realized that when an alarm sounded, something more or less wrong was happening.

"I'm not bitchin', you shithead! The fucking alarm is going off! I'm being practical," the one standing by the door whined, his heart racing. He had been on missions before, but never anything as huge as this…he wanted to get home in one piece and live on the next day.

"Relax, bitch," the man typing sighed. "I've done this way too many times to not know how to do it…you're with a veteran, rookie. Jailbreaks are a fucking piece of cake. Specially in the fucking state of California." Suddenly a small beep issued from the computer, and the man stood up and stretched. "See, last code." He quickly punched a key labeled '_execute'_ and turned around to face the other as he stuffed the slip of paper into a hidden pocket somewhere.

"Can we split now? The fucking idiots finally figured out we're up here." The one by the door pointed at one of the displays of a hall near the room they were in, full of running policemen or guards or whatnot.

"Yeah, we better fly," the 'veteran' said dully. "The convicts can fend for themselves. They're in here cuz they're fucking homicidal maniacs or whatever, anyway." He jogged over to one end of the room, where an air vent was unscrewed from its place on the wall. "Let's exit the way we came. I drilled up and through while you were scouting ahead, anyway, so we can get out before the party really gets started." He got down on his stomach and slid himself through the opening and onto the path of escapade.

"Party my ass," the 'rookie' muttered, going over and following suit, but not before sliding the air vent back into place and screwing it loosely. He was in bad mood—he couldn't believe he was missing the season finale of _CSI: Miami _for a prison-break he was risking his life on…but at least the money in it was good…

When one of the guards finally hacked the new code on the security room one of the intruders had entered to buy time, all that was left as proof of trespassing were the four dead corpses of the prison's employees that had happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

* * *

Another alarm quite similar in sound and nature sounded about two hundred miles away from the prison compound, breaking the dead silence of late night, wee hours of the morning. Its screeching tones blared through hallways in the dark of shadows, on the coast of southern California at the crime-fighting headquarters of Jump City, the Titans Tower. The inhabitants of the Tower sat up with a start from their sleep, wide-eyed and alert at the prospect of battle and danger. Trained by experience, each had thrown their covers back and were out of bed, ready to go minutes after being abruptly awoken, making their way down to the main room of the Tower so the situation they were being called to could be declared and be assessed.

Only one member of the Teen Titans had been awake since the first peal of warning, who happened to be the newest member as well: Kid Flash. Even though he had been in the middle of unpacking his possessions into his new room on the east wing of the Tower, not too far from Cyborg's own room, he managed to maneuver through boxes plus packing paper plus half-unpacked objects cluttered around the room and be in full costume, downstairs by the Titans leader in the main room literally in a flash.

Robin jumped slightly as Kid Flash appeared out basically nowhere, the hiss of an opening door the only clue to Kid Flash's millisecond approach. No one on the team had quite yet gotten used to the rapid movements, entrances, and exits made by Kid Flash. Within the mere six days he had been with the Titans, each member had realized he did everything and anything randomly and swiftly. Cyborg so far loved him, since Kid Flash provided amusement in the form of Starfire shrieking, Raven fuming, and Robin jumping whenever he surprised them with his appearance. Cyborg had started more than a few times as well, but was quick to forget, like Starfire but unlike Raven and Robin. Raven was not amused by anything the new team member did, and regarded him with a distant, cold attitude; Robin was quickly tiring of Kid Flash's abrupt, impulsive attitude.

"What's up?" Kid Flash asked as soon as Robin composed himself, leaning against the couch in front of the huge screen displaying the area of trouble. The others filed in shortly after Kid Flash, gathering around Robin. Raven was the first to note that the flashing red dot on the screen was not in Jump City, but rather north and a good ways inland. She was also the first to analyze and realize what that meant.

"Great, what happened now?" Raven asked tonelessly before Robin could answer Kid Flash's question, earning a few blank stares from the others.

Robin, as usual, seemed to know exactly what she was asking about. He turned to the screen and made the picture zoom in on the exact location of the prison compound. "Prison break, California State Convict Institution, discovered exactly eight minutes ago."

"_Craaaaaaaap_," Cyborg moaned, covering his face with a hand. Starfire let out a small gasp while Raven's face remained void of reaction.

Kid Flash felt incredibly stupid, but asked anyway. "That's not good, is it?"

Robin shook his head, but Kid Flash noticed Raven flash an unexpectedly vicious glare at him, pure loathing reflecting in her navy orbs for a slight second. Taken aback by her ferocity at his question, Kid Flash blinked, wondering what the hell was wrong with her. Then he noted Robin was talking.

"…where all the super-villains plus lunatic convicts us and law enforcement catch are locked up. So yeah, a prison break letting out criminals like Adonis, Mad Mod, or Plasmas, is pretty much disastrous," Robin finished just as Kid Flash actually tuned in. Robin began naming off who would do what, rapidly, anxious to get to the prison. "We need to get there as quickly as possible—Raven and Starfire, now is the time to teleport or fly as fast as the speed of light or whatever. Cyborg, you and me are gonna take the Titan jet…we'll meet up there and try to get as many convicts as possible secure in the complex—"

"Whoa whoa whoa," Kid Flash interjected. "What about me?"

Robin looked at him skeptically. "This is big, and seeing as you haven't been on any other missions yet—"

"What better way to kick off my membership?" Kid Flash concluded, flashing a brilliant smile. "Nice try, leader, but I'm here to help you guys, am I right?"

Robin stiffened, and was about to start an argument when Raven suddenly wrapped her cape around her body, pulling up her hood. "We're wasting time. Let him go," she stated plainly, disappearing in a blanket of obsidian energy through the floor before anyone could refuse.

Robin turned to the door and began jogging towards it. "She's right," he called back. "You," he said, referring to Kid Flash, "run there. Cyborg, Starfire—Titans, go!"

Shrugging as Starfire flew through the door with Cyborg running to catch up with Robin, Kid Flash followed suit and zipped through and out of the Tower, flipping open his communicator to check the coordinates of where he was supposed to go. From the first time it was handed to him, Kid Flash noted the communicator had the had-been-tried-to-be-spoofed-up-but-was-still-second-hand look, scuffed up a bit and with words written in green sharpie smudged on the back. It showed him the correct coordinates, though, so Kid Flash was satisfied.

* * *

"C'mon, man, we've wasted too much time already," one of the intruders told his partner as he waited on a forested hilltop not far from the prison. White lights flashed through the night sky as guards gave futile attempts to keep track of the numerous convicts dashing or slamming through the complex and into the surroundings foliage. But the fact that the convicts were escaping in all directions and could be heading towards the criminal duo at any given minute wasn't what was bothering the complaining one—no, it was the fact that new flashes of light had joined in only moments before: streaks of light blue, discs of bright green, and billows of harsh orange. 

His partner huffed as he finally made it up the steep slope leading away from the prison. "Aw, they've only been here five seconds. We'll be gone before it crosses the bastards' minds to even look for those responsible for the break."

"Whatever. You still shouldn't've stopped to fuck with that bitch back at the exit door…security probably caught it all on tape, asshole."

"Quit bitchin', _shithead_. I told you those bastards won't get it through their heads that we might still be here until we're gone." The man stretched and grinned evilly. "And that bitch was fucking tight, man, I couldn't resist—"

The man was cut off by a sudden gust of wind as a huge shadow, shaped in the form of a raven, emerged from the sodden leaf-covered ground. "So you that positive we're idiotic bastards, now?" a monotone voice drawled dully, seeming to come from everywhere and anywhere at once. The man who had insisted they were fine concerning time for escaping gaped and both went into shock as the purple-clad figure of a girl materialized from the shadow as it dissipated. The girl had a half-bemused, half-annoyed expression on her face, crossing her arms and waiting for the intruders' reactions. It came rather promptly:

"You fucking jackass! I _told_ you!" The one who had been reportedly 'bitching' the whole time shrieked, whacking the other man on the back of the head.

Raven's lip twitched as she fought a sardonic smile as the two men split in different directions and started sprinting for their lives. Raven calmly jerked her hands up into the air as soon as they did so, reciting her infamous words of power with perfect vigor and rehearsed ease: "Azrath, _Mentrion_, CENTHOS!"

Columns of moist, dark earth erupted in front of the two men on either side of Raven, stopping them in their tracks. One flew into the column of dirt face-first, unable to find a proper foothold in the slick ground. The other, most likely the more experienced of the two, dodged the column just in time, his pace unbroken. Raven focused her attention on that one, knowing the other would have to gather his senses for a second—there would be a better chance he would still be there when she came back. Her hands gathered crackling black energy as she locked onto the fast retreating back of her target. Robin had told her to find and contain anyone that could have triggered the prison break if she could—she intended to follow through on that order with her normal almost-perfect execution.

Launching herself into the air on levitation, Raven sped through tree limbs and leaves as she overtook the running man and landed in front of him. He skidded a little bit at her sudden appearance, but quickly changed tact and started running to the left instead. Swiftly following him, Raven blasted twin beams of obsidian energy from her hands towards him, then two more above him. He jumped as he avoided the first power shots, dirt stinging the back of his legs as the ground exploded. Tree branches and leaves fell from the canopy Raven had struck, but the criminal merely ducked and brushed the litter away from him, actually catching a branch and managing to throw it with dangerous force at Raven as she came up behind him. She dodged it easily, and was summoning a little more black energy to trap his legs and finish the struggle when the man came up with an advantage she did not expect: he pulled out a gun from folds of his clothing.

Raven fell back and shot upwards as the first shot tore through the air she had been in minutes before. She already knew her cause was lost as she dodged two more bullets while the man's already vague figure receded into the forest. In a last attempt and surge of power, she repeated her meditation words and instructed all the trees in a slight radius around her snap back and ram forward, shaking a good few animals from their slumber. Her answer was a quick succession of six shots, all of which barely missed her as she dodged and stopped them in midair. Fed up and afraid she had just lost her only chance of catching the people behind all the troubles tonight, Raven prepared to fire a huge blast of energy in the direction of the shots—but was halted by an orange-yellow blur that zipped in front of her aim and came to a stop.

"You know, it wasn't too bright of you to leave an easy catch behind," the cheery voice of Kid Flash that Raven had all too soon learned to hate chastised. He stood in the way, holding the man who had collided with her first assault by the neck of his shirt. He winked at Raven as she slowly brought her hands down to her sides, obsidian energy fading from her eyes and body. He smiled charmingly as she landed, not seeming to notice she was more or less…enraged.

Raven's eyelid twitched as she fought to keep her anger in check, drawing up her hood in jerky, barely controlled movements. "Imagine that," she said through clenched teeth, desperately wanting to punch Kid Flash's face into the ground. "Lucky you left your duties assigned directly to you by the leader of the team to come help me when the rest of the team was most likely battling for their lives with some ruthless maniac or super-villain. Very noble."

Kid Flash's face fell, his brow furrowing together in anger as he threw the unconscious man he had been holding at Raven's feet. "Now look," he challenged, eyes flashing as dangerously as Raven's were. "It's not my fault that even though you think you can handle yourself macho-style and everything and you don't need anyone to help you out and you're oh so alone in the world with no one able to sympathize with your oh so harsh life, certain people—like, hmm, your _friends_, which I'm sure Robin and the rest qualify—actually care about you and would actually send someone to see if everything was okay the minute they heard gunshots. And I happen to be the fastest person on the team, if you notice?"

Still fuming, Raven ignored his response and knelt down by the limp form he had graciously discarded at her feet, lowering her hood. She checked for a pulse, and finding one, turned the man on his back and slapped him as hard as she could. Raven took joy in the movement, putting all her frustration into it—and it woke the man. Sputtering, it didn't take long for the man to realize he was being examined by two Titans and for him to begin struggling. Raven, however, already had restraints of black energy around his limbs, trapping him to the ground as she put her hands to her temples, closed her eyes, and began to prod his mind. Kid Flash watched in fascination, his earlier anger already forgotten.

Raven sifted through memories of children playing on swing sets, dogs barking, adult laughter, a woman's grunts of pleasure, a man's frightened yell, searching for information that would unmask what the real purpose of the jail break was. _Who do you work for, who do you work for,_ she muttered mentally. Then suddenly colors flashed before her eyes, uniforms, an underground facility of training, a rush of excitement at finally getting a first assignment, a figure began to form from swirling masses in Raven's mind's eye, then—

The thought flow stopped, abruptly and without warning, causing Raven to jerk back in surprise of the sudden black that met her mind. She stayed connected to the man's mind a few moments longer, searching for stray thoughts, feelings, anything…but all she found was a void. An endless cavity of nothing—nothing at all; and suddenly, Raven knew what had happened with a certainty that almost scared her. She severed the connection of her mind and the man's, just as she felt the start of the ghastly, inhuman tug of death at her own soul. Breathing raggedly, she opened her eyes to find herself on her elbows, dirt scuffed up where she had subconsciously pushed herself away from death. Kid Flash was clutching a slender dagger-like weapon, only about five or six inches long, in a bloodied hand, staring dumbfound at the now lifeless body of the intruder. For at least halfway into his neck was buried the same type of weapon Kid Flash had, causing to blood gush out onto the forest floor. Rapidly, Raven wrenched her head back to survey the trees around them, and saw what she was looking for. A shadow of a figure, barely there, was crouched in a tree not far from her and Kid Flash, silently tucking another of the weapons back into itself one way or another. For some reason, though she could not see anything other than the outline of the figure, Raven new beyond all doubt that second that it was the same perpetrator from the alley so many weeks ago. It seemed to recognize her too—for in that moment as Raven jumped up with an accusatory, "_You!"_ ringing from her lips and echoing against the trees, it disappeared into the night, blending in perfectly and becoming literally invisible.

About to go after it, Raven was pulled back by a strong hand on her shoulder. "Whoa, sorry, but that guy's gone," Kid Flash informed her as she turned around and gave him a death glare for stopping her a second time. She knew what he meant, though, so sighed and drew her hood up again. She stared at the dead man lying beside them, then at Kid Flash's injured hand. He was still gripping the killer's weapon, but the blood had started to flow more freely from his wound.

She gestured towards it. "You know, it wasn't too bright of you to catch a flying knife," she stated in a monotone voice. She did catch a second-glance from Kid Flash, though, because it wasn't hard to miss the tease.

He let it pass. "Well, we all have our not too bright moments, you know," he replied, giving her a dashing smile.

Raven found to horror she was trying not to blush, and cast out for something else to say. "Look…" she started, pointedly staring at a bush in the opposite direction, "I'm…sorry about getting after you earlier. I have this issue with people, so in case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm more than a bit snappish most of the time." She turned back to him and gave him one more glare, just to prove her point.

He didn't do anything other than grin. "Ah, feisty," he drawled, tossing away the weapon. "I like 'em feisty."

Raven stiffened, and felt her temper rising again. She pushed it down, merely answering, "The last person who called me 'feisty,' had his ass kicked not even a second later and was thrown in jail. I suggest you don't ever refer to me using that word again."

Kid Flash snickered. "Right, you got it. But, you know," he continued in a mischievous voice, jerking his thumb behind him, "he's not in jail anymore, hate to break it to you…"

Raven glared icily, and Kid Flash took the hint to shut up. Quickly.

But as Raven turned away from Kid Flash, preparing to contact Robin to tell him of her turn-out, she couldn't help remembering with a frighteningly deep ache in her chest who exactly had kicked the ass of the last person to call her 'feisty'.

* * *

Gar's chest cackled as he let loose a whoop of a cough as he pulled his light jacket closer to his body, battling the cool breeze whipping through the city streets as he walked through the crowded sidewalks of bustling people. In his company were, as usual, Michael and Kassie, along with Tye Sulivan. They had just gotten out of school, book bags still on their backs, and were heading to the main hang-out of the Badboiz band: a coffee house of one kind or another owned by the Stofbeckers' uncle. Michael and John had consistently bothered him over the past couple of days to come to the band's average hang-out to hear them play—the two wouldn't stop talking excitedly about the gig Kassie had gotten them into, and wanted input on their latest song along with the others. Eventually Gar gave in, wanting sincerely to get out and actually _do_ something seeing as he had stayed holed up in the apartment during his free time ever since the IHOP incident. He didn't know why he hadn't gone anywhere; Kassie and Michael had invited him numerous times to numerous places. Each time he just couldn't bring himself to say yes, coming up with excuses that sounded barely reasonable. Steve had called him lethargic, earning a blank stare from Gar, then he called him a flat-out lazy bum, earning a chorus of defenses from Gar.

Currently, Michael and Tye were having an animated conversation about night clubs ahead, while Kassie was venting to Gar about a bad grade she had gotten on a paper in Carson's class. Gar wasn't really listening.

"And since when is separate spelled with an 'a' instead of an 'e'? Since never, as far as I'm concerned! He shouldn't even be docking off points for spelling, it's not my fault spell-check didn't catch it, instead he should be focusing on the essence of the paper! My thesis was totally plausible, why couldn't have Edgar Allen Poe been having an affair with his stepmother while he was married to his cousin? I had plenty of brilliant resources, and examples of guilty feelings bleeding through his poems! Why wouldn't there be? I mean—"

"Are we there yet?" Gar interrupted, giving a slight shiver. With a growl from his stomach he had suddenly realized he was hungry since he hadn't eaten lunch, and was now hoping the coffee house served more than coffee.

Still glowering, Kassie gestured towards a bright yellow one-story building coming up on their right that looked extremely out of place among the multi-story brick stores, condos, offices and whatnot. "It's right there," she grumbled, knowing Gar hadn't been listening to a word she had said. As she pointed, Gar began to hear the faint chords of an electric guitar.

As they got closer to the building, Gar saw in huge, neon-lighted orange block letters 'Mark's Coffee Diner'. Steaming cups of coffee and sandwiches were painted in vibrant colors against the yellow walls, an 'open' sign hanging crookedly on the inside of the glass doors leading into the building. Glass windows lined the front, looking out onto the street, and people laughing, talking, and eating could be seen through the windows, sitting around round tables of different colors. It looked like the local diner of this area of downtown Jump City, people going in and coming out continuously.

Expecting to go in through the front doors, Gar was somewhat surprised when Michael and Tye, still talking, made a sharp turn down the alley beside the building. Glancing at Kassie, who followed them boredly, Gar did the same and saw a door propped open by a stool, the sound of voices drifting out. Now he knew exactly where they were going. As soon as the four walked through the door, Michael and Tye threw their backpacks down against the wall, and Kassie dropped hers on a chair nearby. Gar stood in the doorway for second, allowing himself to observe the official hangout of the Badboiz.

First off, the room was incredibly _orange_. All the walls were painted the bright color, with a purple ceiling to top it off. The floor was plain cement, polished a little to give it some character. The next thing Gar noticed was a yellow stage directly across from the door he was standing in; it wasn't very tall in height, only about six inches or so, but it did take up most of the wall it was based against. On the stage various instruments and such took up space. In the very back sat a drum set, plastic semi-walls to deafen the noise placed around it. Next to the drums, though a little bit forward, were two mikes and two guitars—one a glossy black, one slightly smaller and dark red with flames decorating the space beside the strings. In front of all of it, in between two colossal speakers, was a single mike and a black-and-white guitar.

On the left side of the stage far into the room's corner was a computer and a desk of notebooks and paper, crowding each other. Sitting further down was one of the round tables Gar had seen in the coffee shop with its own set of chairs, presently occupied by Benji, Nick, and John, Michael and Tye now standing beside them. There was also a door next to the table, which Gar was pretty sure lead to the actual diner owned by the Stofbeckers' uncle. To the right of the stage stood what suspiciously looked like one of those huge recording microphones, and piled beneath it was various recording equipment. Not to far from that, a dark-green couch took up the space by the wall, its cushions sagging from use but looking comfortable at the same time. Gar was impressed with the place.

"Hey, lookie! It's our fabulous mate Gar, felluhs!" Nick loudly exclaimed as Gar began walking towards the table after he coughed once more, his observation done. Grinning, Gar gave a casual wave to John and Benji as Nick moved from his seat to give Gar his usual greeting. Nick was an interesting guy, that Gar had decided—he actually had an assigned greeting for each person he knew. To Kassie, he gave a bear hug when possible; he always tripped John, Gar had seen him do it more than once at school; Benji was given what Kassie deemed a 'guy-hug' (**A/N:** for those of you who don't know, the description of a guy-hug is given at the end of this chapter, to clear any confusion); Tye and he always did a weird high-five thing; Michael and he high-fived and missed; and Gar…

He steeled himself as Nick swept over him and put him in a headlock, digging his knuckles into Gar head in a big-brother 'hey there, sport,' fashion, shouting, "NOOGIE!" as he did so.

The boys exploded into laughter, Gar ruffled but laughing as well when Nick released him. The ritual was repeated every time Nick saw him, but it never hurt—the only person Gar had ever seen Nick inflict bodily harm upon was John, and Nick didn't know John wasn't adept at catching a football. Sometimes it annoyed Gar slightly when he wasn't feeling the greatest, but each time the rest of the guys seemed to enjoy it more and more…

Kassie rolled her eyes back in the corner with the computer, busily typing in passwords to boot it up. "You guys act like it's the first time you've heard Nick do and shout a ridiculous thing every single time," she chastised as the laughter died down, Gar dumping his backpack not too far away from Michael's and Tye's.

"Yeesh, Benji, get your kitty declawed before she tears all of us to pieces," Michael commanded Benji, resulting in a glare from Kassie and a snort from John. Benji raised his eyebrows.

Nick suddenly started over to where Kassie was, a mischievous gleam in his eyes. "I know what me Kassie needs," he started, stretching his arms out wide as he closed in on her. "She 'asn't had 'er dose of Nick today!"

And with that, Michael, John, and Gar laughing as Tye and Benji looked on with amusement, Nick buried her in his trademark bear hug, her barrage of insults and threats muffled. After a few moments of suffocation, he released her only to swing her out of her chair and onto his shoulder. "If yah don't mind, mate, I'm gonna borrow your girlie for a tic," Nick told Benji impassively, walking towards the door leading into the diner. He winked at the laughing group as he disappeared through the door, Kassie sighing as she propped her elbow against Nick's back so she could rest her chin on her hand. "_Boys_," they heard her grumble as the door shut.

"Now that the show's over," Benji said, rising from the table as the last of the laughter from Gar, Michael, and John died down. "What's up?"

"Nothing much," Tye responded, "just had to wait on Michael here after school, the reason for us being late." He jerked his thumb at Michael.

"Hey, wasn't my fault the teacher didn't think shooting spitballs qualified as kinetic energy," Michael grumbled. John snickered.

"You should've known it would've landed you in detention," Tye retorted. Benji grinned at Michael's rolling of eyes as he headed over to the stage.

"Whatever," Michael said, shrugging it off and turning to Gar. "So I brought you here so you could hear the band play…" He glared in the direction of Tye, John, and Benji. "…though they're not showing a lot of enthusiastic jump-to-it about them."

"Right, man," John chuckled. Jumping onto the stage, he went over to the red guitar and swung the shoulder strap into place around his shoulder as he picked up the guitar from its stand. He fished in his pocket for minute, pulling out a guitar pick. "We haven't switched on the volume yet, just listening to some demos," John informed Michael, Tye, and Gar, strumming a few quiet chords.

"I can fix that," Tye chirped, heading over to the desk. He opened on of the drawers to reveal a control panel packed inside. After twiddling a few nozzles and buttons, Tye flipped a switch, causing a couple of lights to begin flittering on the speakers. "Try that," Tye said over his shoulder to John, who plucked a couple strings. They came out of the speaker in loud, rounded notes, but not loud enough to blow windows or anything. Nodding, Tye shut the drawer and walked over to his backpack, taking out a pair of beat up, white-tipped drumsticks.

As Tye made his way onto the stage while John warmed up on his guitar, Benji picked up a notebook that had been laying on one of the speakers. "We have most of the songs together that we're gonna play at the gig," Benji reported over string runs as Michael and Gar joined him beside the speaker. "But there's this one song that's not totally put together yet—Nick is still making up his part on whim every time we play the song. We wanna try to run through the first verse or so today."

Michael held out his hand for the notebook, and began reading the scribbled words in it when Benji handed it to him. Gar leaned over Michael's shoulder, assuming the words were the lyrics.

After they both finished scanning the words, Michael gave the notebook back to Benji. "Sounds cool. Let's run it!"

Benji stepped onto the stage, grinning. "You got it!"

It didn't take long before all three musicians were done tuning and ready to play, microphones switched on and the speakers turned even farther up. Michael and Gar had retired to the round table, waiting. Gar was wondering where exactly Nick and Kassie had gotten to when Benji suddenly spoke into the microphone. "All right guys, here we go," he warned, stringing a couple notes. He yelled a countdown at Tye and the drums began shaking the room, but not loud enough to cover the trills and chords of the two guitars. Fascinated, Gar watched John's and Benji's fingers fly across the handles of the guitars—the tune was a catchy, half-punk one, and Benji's boyish voice fit the music perfectly as he started to sing:

_You're screaming silently within yourself_

_And you want somebody to hear you_

_You're screaming silently within yourself_

_And you want somebody to save you_

Suddenly the music grew louder, the strumming of the guitars almost violent and the drums a cascade of patterns—still, it wasn't harsh to the ears, maintaining its beat and actual tune.

_PULL ME OUT…I'M DROWNING IN BLOODY WATERS_

_PULL ME OUT…I'M SWAYING IN A MAKESHIFT FORTRESS_

_PULL ME OUT…I WANT SOMEBODY TO SAVE ME_

_PULL ME OUT…I want somebody to love me_

_Feeling empty in this so-called life_

_It's a miracle I'm not passing away (away, away)_

_Always running from reality_

_Please, just let me be_

_PULL ME OUT…I'M DROWNING IN BLOODY WATERS_

_PULL ME OUT…I'M SWAYING IN A MAKESHIFT FORTRESS_

_PULL ME OUT…I WANT SOMEBODY TO SAVE ME_

_PULL ME OUT…I want somebody to love me_

The music faded, John holding out one last run, and Michael began to clap. Gar followed suit and whistled, succeeded by a hoot from Michael. "And that's all, folks," Benji said into the microphone jokingly as John gave an exaggerated bow. His guitar almost hit the stage.

"I would throw roses, but I'm not the right guy for you," Michael told John as he came up from his bow. John searched for something to throw, but decided his pick was better than nothing. Michael gave a yelp as it swiped him in the ear. Gar collapsed into his chair laughing.

"That was awesome!" Gar told Benji as Michael threw the pick back at John.

"Yeah, well, we try." Benji waggled his eyebrows.

"I'm hungry!" Tye exclaimed from behind the drums, his voice muffled a tad from the plastic walls.

As if in answer to his whining, Kassie and Nick appeared through the swinging door, each carrying plastic bags full of take-out boxes. Under his arms, Nick carried a six-pack of soda. "An' here's our answer to your prayers," Nick brawled happily as Tye immediately scrambled off the stage. Benji and Michael followed suit, John staying behind to play some more on his guitar.

"We got on-the-house classical subs for everybody," Kassie announced, the boys cheering. "I hope you don't mind bologna and cheddar," she added to Gar as the others began to dig through the bags and popping soda cans. Tye didn't wait for anything, chopping into his sandwich before the rest had even begun to be unwrapped.

"Aw, man," Michael complained as a big glob of mustard dripped onto his hand from Tye's sub as he had been reaching under for a drink. "Someone give me some napkins so I can line the room before our walls are painted with mustard, mayo, and tomatoes!"

Nick smacked a hand against his forehead. "Dammit, mate, I knew I was forgettin' something!"

"I'll go get some," Gar offered, going to the door that led to the restaurant.

"They'll be in a dispenser on the counter," Kassie instructed over her shoulder as Gar walked through the door. He waved to let her know he had heard her.

The diner was alive with the buzz of conversation, peals of laughter or exclamations rising above here or there. Clanks of silverware and plates could be heard from behind the counter in kitchen, plus the occasional ding of a timer going off or a rush of hissing steam. Waiters and waitresses scurried about the place, filling in orders and refilling cups. Gar found it amazing that a place could be this busy at only four-thirty in the afternoon.

Gar tore his eyes away from the customers and employees, looking along the counter for the dispenser Kassie had mentioned. There were actually ten or twelve in various places, but Gar headed for the closest one, happily taking in the hurried and busied air of the diner—he didn't know exactly why, but Gar felt more comfortable in crowds and situations with people bustling about than in a solitary, few-people setting. Steve had said he was simply a people person; his foster dad had actually more or less given a sigh of relief when Gar began hanging out with Kassie, Michael, and the others more—Gar thought Steve had been worried about his son not getting out more, since he had always wanted to do stuff non-stop with Steve whenever they had gotten together. Even in the Tower, Gar had usually been the one to invite the rest of the team to move around.

Pulling out all the napkins he believed would supply Tye and Michael well enough, Gar pushed the last thought from his head before he could regret thinking about it. Gar had decided to come here and have fun with his…friends, not sit and sulk about the past. Nodding to himself, Gar was about to turn around and make back for the door when he froze, the hairs on the back of his neck rising—and without a doubt, he knew someone was watching him…it had become a familiar feeling once he had turned twelve or thirteen, after all. Gar casually searched the crowd, but he didn't think whoever it was would be looking directly at him.

He was wrong.

There, on the other side of the restaurant, was a woman seated at the countertop, staring directly at him through a pair of heavy shades. He didn't know how, but Gar could sense her eyes boring into him through the sun glasses. She was a mysterious figure, like the kind you see in movies—even though there was only a slight nip in the air outside, she wore a calf-length black overcoat and a black turtle neck under that. Her legs were crossed in a very sophisticated manner, polished high-heeled boots flashing in the light as she tapped one foot methodically up and down on the tiled floor. Her midnight-black hair was let loose in a wild wave of curls, covering most of her face. As Gar observed her, she suddenly gave a crooked grin, showing bright white teeth between rose-red lips. And just as suddenly, Gar experienced an extremely strong urge to turn and run as fast as he could in the other direction. The woman's grin widened, as if she realized the discomfort she was causing. Once again, Gar didn't know exactly where the feeling was coming from—but as soon as the woman lazily lowered her sunglasses from her eyes, Gar immediately knew what is was.

In her wide, hazel eyes, a dangerous, insane light danced, one like Gar had never seen before…and it scared him to death, directed at him.

"HEY! Gar! Mind grabbing some salt and pepper, too?"

Gar started at John's voice, turning around wildly to catch a glimpse of John's smiling face as he waved at him. "Sure," Gar shouted back at John, who nodded and ducked back into the door that led to the hangout. Gar remained staring at the door for a second later, then slowly turned back around, afraid of what he might find.

The woman was gone.

There was no trace of her ever being there, no empty plate or crumpled napkins or spots on the counter—just to ever-slowing twirling of the cushion on the stool where she had been seated. Watching the stool stop spinning, Gar sneezed extremely violently, causing him to almost fling the napkins he was holding across the room. Like the sneeze had jolted him back to logic, Gar grabbed the salt and pepper shakers beside the napkin dispenser in his free hand and began making his way back to the door. Sniffing, he concluded he had either been imagining things or was really paranoid, or both. There was no reason a crazy woman would be stalking or carefully watching him, an average, high school kid—because that was him now, living an ordinary, life-with-no-green life.

Gar missed a step, realizing the full impact of what he had just thought. Then, out of the blue, his steps became more confident and sound than they had been for the past month or so. Something had clicked within Gar, and he smiled. Pushing the door open with a foot, Gar exclaimed happily to his _friends_, "_Al_-right, someone take this pepper before I drop it and everyone starts sneezing!"

* * *

**A/N:** so hope you guys liked it! hopefully another installment will be coming A LOT sooner than this one came…thanx for all of you who have encouraged me with your reviews! but now for your reference, a 'guy-hug' is thus:

1. guy #1 gives a 'what's-up-dawg' high-five to guy #2

2. guy #1 pulls guy #2 into a bear hug of some sort, so guy#1 can clap guy #2 on the back with a resounding thud and vice versa

3. you will have most likely seen this illustrated at a pre-game, gating party between your dad and his best friend

if you don't know what a 'what's-up-dawg' high-five is, you don't deserve to be actively taking part in today's society

that is all.


	15. Part 2: Emotions Running High

**Author's Note:** YES! Finally, another chapter finished! Sorry about the tardiness, but all I can say is: _God bless spring break!_ So yeah, I think this is one of the longest chapters as of yet…I apologize about that. But this chapter was also the hardest to write for me…dunno why, but everything just seemed so _awkward_ while I was writing it, and _ugh._ Nothing really happened the way I wanted it to…SIGH. I'm glad it's over! As you may notice, I did some things unconventionally—Raven's meeting with her Emotions, for one, and her whole zooming-around-the-world-as-a-spirit-thingy. Not exactly what I expected to write, but not totally ruined either. The next chapter will hopefully NOT be this agonizingly long or hard to come up with, seeing as I have no idea what's gonna happen yet! But no worries, I do have the measly beginnings of a plan…and I'll get back to you on them later. So. Hope you guys don't think this chapter sucks as much as I think it does, and once again I LOVE ALL MY REVIEWERS! YOU GUYS ARE EXCELLENT! _Ahem_. Yeah…the end (oh, and yes the lyrics from last chapter are _mine_…so I call copyright!)

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**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

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Steve Dayton remained in bed a good couple of minutes even after he slammed a fist down on the radio-alarm clock, content to sleep the morning away and enjoy the slight warmth of sun rays on his face and quiet breeze from a half-opened window blowing through his bedroom. The morning noises had begun to echo louder within Steve's ears, but he was able to ignore the honks of distress and roaring of traffic out on the street below if he concentrated hard enough of the faint song of a bluebird right outside the window—and the song lulled him into a dreamy half-sleep, one he wasn't anxious to leave. That wasn't what fate had in mind for Steve for this lazy, just-right Saturday morning, however; that much Steve fathomed as soon as he heard the snap and slow creak of someone attempting to sneak into his room unnoticed. His eyelids flickered and the corner of his mouth twitched as he begged the heavens for one more minute—right as he felt a heavy weight land smack on his stomach, causing him to heave upwards as his eyes began to water.

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty!" Gar demanded loudly as he sat on a groaning Steve, a loaded water gun aimed at his foster father's face. Steve, eyes still full of sleep and closed tightly, groaned more in response to Gar's request, and tried to flip over on his side. Gar grinned evilly as Steve searched blindly for something to put over his face. "Alrighty, then, I gave you fair warning!" And with that, Gar pulled the trigger of the water gun, spouting a blast of cold water in Steve's eyes and up his nose.

Steve let out a yelp earsplitting enough to make more than a few passersby glance upwards as it filtered out the window. Raising his hands to block the water as Gar roared with laughter, Steve rolled over frantically in an effort to toss Gar off him, therefore moving him out of range of water blasts. A particularly definite thud let Steve know his effort hadn't been in vain. Grabbing a pillow and rubbing both water and sleep out of his eyes, Steve launched himself off the bed with a war cry and onto Gar, pillow waving back and forth.

"Okay, OKAY! I give up!" Gar shouted against a barrage of pillow blows, water gun knocked out of reach.

Hitting Gar in the face with the pillow, Steve gave a short laugh. "Sure, you say that," he replied, letting Gar catch his breath and climb up off the floor. And right before Gar made a dash for the water gun, Steve landed one last blow across his back hard enough to make Gar trip and fall to the ground. "But I've learned not to entirely trust you."

Gar snickered from his present place on the floor, before getting up once again. "Aw, come on, you gotta admit that was a good one," Gar said grinning, gesturing towards the water gun. Steve chuckled.

"I guess I could give you credit this time." Gar beamed. "But I don't think it was entirely necessary…"

"Necessary!" Gar exclaimed incredulously. "Dude, it's fifteen to eleven! What happened to an early start?"

"I decided to forego the 'early' part," Steve supplied nonchalantly, earning a punch from Gar. "Hey, settle down! The beaches can't be _that_ crowded yet." Steve started out of the room.

"Are you kidding?" Gar said exasperatedly, following. "This is has been the best day to go in the past week or two! Everyone, including tourists, is going to be there!"

Walking into the kitchen of their apartment, Steve gave a wicked grin. "All the better—more babes to scope out."

Gar raised a finger, thinking Steve's reasoning over as Steve rummaged through the fridge for something to eat. "Well," Gar said thoughtfully, "you _do_ have a point." Steve smiled. "Just don't ever let me here the phrase 'babes to scope out' from you again."

Steve frowned. "Hey, I'm not forty yet, I'm good-looking, I have a well-paying job, and I'm single. Why can't I date?"

"I never said you couldn't date," Gar countered. "But remember you also have a sixteen year old boy living with you who _minds_ seeing you making out on the living room couch…just saying." Steve chuckled into the orange juice carton he had picked up. "Can we go now?"

"Seeing as you're not—" Steve stopped, observing that Gar was in fact wearing a t-shirt, red board/swimming shorts, and thongs (**A/N:** AS IN THE SHOES. I would've said flip-flops, but that sounded kinda…_wrong_ when describing what a guy would be wearing…yeah). He also noted two beach towels, a wallet, and some more water guns were sitting on the counter. Gar waited expectantly for him to finish.

"…Actually, seeing as you _are_ ready to go, and everything we need is on the counter, I have no choice but to go get dressed as fast as I can and hope we'll find a decent spot on the beach so I can avoid _too_ much blame if we end up tanning on the top of the car," Steve said in one breath, putting the orange juice away, shutting the fridge door, and making his way back to his room.

Gar grinned as Steve shut the bedroom door, walking over to the fridge to get himself some orange juice. In truth, Gar had only gotten out of bed about twenty minutes ago himself, not too keen on the 'early' part of an early start, either…but Steve didn't need to know that. _Sucker_, Gar thought as he began to pour some orange juice into a cup. Then, immediately after that thought, orange juice splattered onto the kitchen counter as Gar hacked violently, his hand jerking with the force of the coughing. Managing to put the orange juice carton down, Gar covered his mouth with his arm as he waited for the coughing fit to subside, wincing at the wet, crackling sound the cough had. As soon as the coughing halted, Gar glanced nervously at Steve's bedroom door, hoping he hadn't heard anything. After a moment of listening, Gar hurried over to the orange juice spilled and began wiping it up as if nothing had ever happened.

The coughing had started up about a week and a half ago, but Gar waved it away as a slight chest cold at Kassie's questioning. Of course, then it had only been a few dry coughs here or there, triggered by a small tickling at the back of his throat. But it had started to turn into something a bit more a couple days ago, transforming into an exhausting heaving that popped up at least three or four times daily, some fits worse than others. So far, Gar hadn't let anyone know about his _cold _(for he had convinced himself that's all it was), hiding it with cough medicine he had found in his bathroom cabinet. Knowing by experience Steve took seriously to anything seeming unhealthy and concerning Gar, granted Gar's past health, he was determined to keep this cough from Steve as to avoid frantic visits to the doctor's office and needles. Because Gar _hated_ needles—with a passion.

After Gar had cleaned up the orange juice and had actually had some toast, Steve finally emerged from his bedroom, fresh from a quick shower and dressed for a day…or rather getting closer to afternoon, now…at the beach. "Alright! Can we _go_ now?" Gar whined, jumping over happily to gather his stuff from the counter and such in his arms. Steve laughed and after grabbing a beer from the fridge, opened the door to head down the stairs and to the apartment parking lot. Gar was already out the building by the time Steve had managed to lock up. Steve followed quickly, smiling.

Steve had been mildly surprised when Gar proposed a day-long visit to the beach between them, but had swiftly moved on to a content mood while Gar and he had discussed plans. Steve had started to worry he would never be able to find again the once always chattering and well, genuinely _happy_ boy Gar had become over the past few years with the Titans. He had all but given up after a series of seemingly endless refusals to all the outings Steve proposed, and was starting to let his hope of Gar would ever truly settle into life of lacking in superhero-duty meander. One of his friends at work had suggested Steve give Gar a little bit more time when Steve told her of his predicament with Gar—but not all the complications, of course, just that Gar seemed to have trouble settling in. And as if intent on proving his co-worker's words, a couple of days ago Gar had come home after spending the evening with some of his friends with a new bounce in his step; actually, it hadn't been new at all, just the returning of a missed factor. Since then, Gar had started up on corny jokes again, laughed more freely, and seemed much more active and satisfied. Steve didn't know what had happened at that diner Gar had went to, or if this was all a charade Gar was putting on to keep Steve from worrying any longer, but Steve was pathetically glad the change had finally come along.

"Come on, you're walking slower than a sloth!" Gar called to Steve, standing by Steve's car.

"That's not possible," Steve retorted, coming closer. "A sloth can't walk, only climb!"

"How do you know that?" Gar said mischievously, climbing into the car as soon as Steve had unlocked it. "You've never been one before, have you?"

That was the first time Gar had mentioned his powers or anything connecting to his Titan life in a conversation, but Steve took it in a stride. "Ah, but it's not within my dignity to shove off _National Geographic_."

"Those losers! You can't tell me you've believed them all these years!"

Thus, for the rest of the trip, they argued good-humoredly about whether a sloth could walk or not, and if _National Geographic _was all it claimed to be. (**A/N:** DORKS. heh.)

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Melina Ragonu's deep brown eyes were void of any emotion as she stared passively at the minuscule, bright red computer disc. Dim lights flickered lazily in her lair, computer screens illuminated with surveillance-tape images or streams of green words and numbers as numerous calculations were figured. Her pet had left her alone while it attended to a pleasure mission, a robbery spree with a few killings here or there, to be specific. Ragonu had granted the mission for the delightful success of infuriating the Titans at the jail break, and the perfection with which it had been executing its assignments—and she had the intention of her pet 'accidentally' running into none other than her favorite partner-in-crime.

For at the moment she wasn't entirely pleased with Slade. At all.

Ragonu suddenly flipped the disk out of her fingers and onto the floor, slamming her fist into the surface of the table with enough force to cause a hollow clash to echo loudly against the silent steel-enforced plastered walls. Ragonu's chair scraped against the cement floor as she stood, her face twisted in rage. The little bastard had cheated her, tricked her into doing his dirty work once again—she would've given Slade applause for the ingenious evident in this ploy, had the victim not been her. Ragonu was tiring quickly of Slade's games of power, too, and was ready to take him down when given the chance. And Ragonu was exceptionally well at recognizing opportunities.

Letting out a stream of curses directed towards Slade, Ragonu spotted the disc on the floor and bent down to pick it up again. Idiot device, Ragonu thought with malice, brushing off dirt from the disc with the tip of her fingers. Slade had indeed given her what she had asked for—the complete genetic blueprint was there, everything she needed to execute her calculations, Ragonu was sure of that. But the frustration did not lay there: no, Slade was not ready to give her what she so badly desired until he squeezed every single drop of assistance from her. Therefore the reason a dozen genetic codes and files on various super-villain convicts with specific instructions were there also, blocking the way to what Ragonu wanted—basically, a firewall that wouldn't budge until she completed a mutation of the codes to make the individual stronger and more powerful.

Ah, Slade was a good one. Ragonu had already crashed two computers trying to hack around the blockade, but to no avail. Even if it was possible to break the wall, which Ragonu doubted, she couldn't risk anymore of her computers—too much data was contained on them, and to lose it would be the end of her. However she despised the idea of wasting precious time on performing a petty secretary-like task, Ragonu had no choice. Yes, Slade had figured Ragonu well, and he had played his hand just right.

Staring at the disc, though, Ragonu's eyes narrowed as an idea formed in her mind. In an understatement, she was the geneticist necessary for Slade's plan, the reason he had entrapped her…but while he may have played his cards correctly, Ragonu still had a few more to lie down—Slade did not. A slow grin spread across Ragonu's wraith-like face, the catches and details falling into place within her mind. Scurrying over to a monitor, Ragonu entered a series of digits and entered the disc. Watching the screen go black and come back up to the programs on the disc, Ragonu began her studies.

"Gotcha, bastard," she whispered furiously, a low chuckle escaping her throat as she settled in to send one con's message to another.

* * *

"Can't this thing go any _faster_?"

"Man, you're already practically flying off the track! And you're beating me. What more do you want it to do?"

"…Go _faster_."

The screen lit up in a volley of victory fireworks as Kid Flash's yellow racing car flew across the finish line, Cyborg's car still a minute behind from catching up. Cyborg threw down his controller in frustration as Kid Flash's virtual racer received the first-place trophy for the seventeenth time in a row, Kid Flash fooling with his controller boredly. They had only been playing this game for the past four hours, and he was more than ready to call it quits.

"I don't get it!" Cyborg groaned. "I've been playing this game since forever, and you're able to come in and beat my record score in an hour!" Cyborg stuck an accusatory finger in Kid Flash's face, catching him in the middle of a yawn. "_How do you do it?"_

Shutting his mouth, Kid Flash shrugged and tossed his controller onto the floor as he stood up to stretch. "You may not have noticed, but I have a knack for fast," he replied, grinning, as Cyborg simmered. He had been the one in the first place to challenge the new member to the game, but hadn't expected Kid Flash to actually catch onto the game after twenty minutes of playing it.

Raven rolled her eyes from the end of the couch she was sitting on, book covering her face from the two on the other end. She had come out of her room about an hour ago to find them playing the videogame that Cyborg oh-so-loved. Not knowing where Robin was and not too keen on finding Starfire for fear of being forced to do some mall or fair related activity, Raven had accepted the present company and settled down to read her newest book, only glancing up every once in a while as Cyborg yelled at Kid Flash for beating him.

Kid Flash suddenly disappeared from Cyborg's side in a blur, reappearing at the kitchen refrigerator. "You guys got any grub?" he asked, opening the fridge door to let its dim white light fall on the floor. "I'm starving."

Cyborg gave him an incredulous look. "How can you even _think_ of eating at a time like this!"

"Easy." Kid Flash pulled out a container of some bright-yellow sludge stuff, sniffing it curiously. "It's way past four, I haven't had anything to eat all day, and I'm pretty much bored of your game, Cyborg." He gave a glaring Cyborg one of his charming smiles. "You can only win so many times."

"Oh, no, you aren't leaving this room until I take _you down,_" Cyborg threatened menacingly.

"Do you guys like Chinese?" Kid Flash ignored Cyborg. "I can be over to Hong Kong and back in, like, fifteen minutes."

Raven raised her book higher as Cyborg prepared to yell at Kid Flash, steeling herself. Just as Cyborg opened his mouth, however, the _swish_ and _click_ of someone entering the room sounded, and all three looked over to see a beaming Starfire glide in through the door.

"Friends!" she exclaimed happily. "Has your day of freedom been to your liking?"

Cyborg's eye twitched and Raven went back to her book as Kid Flash gave Starfire a huge smile. "Just beating Cyborg's all-time high record on _NASCAR 300_, nothing taxing…"

Starfire nodded blankly as Cyborg fought the urge to run over and beat up Kid Flash, clearly not knowing or caring what _NASCAR 300_ was. "I see…"

Raven brought her book down, honing in on Starfire. "Hey, Starfire—where have you been all day?"

Starfire smiled happily as Raven asked, as if remembering something she wanted to live over. "Well, I spent most of this day 'hanging' with Robin, as you from Earth say." She sighed happily, a dreamy look on her face. "He showed me many useful and new combat moves after we attended a moving picture at a theater down in the town."

Cyborg and Raven glanced at each other, Cyborg smirking slyly and forgetting his previous downfall as the king of _NASCAR 300_. Kid Flash scratched the back of his head, not noticing the passing of understanding between the others. "So, what, you and Robin went on a date? Nobody told me you two were together."

Starfire blushed vividly at the end of Kid Flash's words, Cyborg snickering and Raven rubbing one of her temples. Kid Flash turned around at the Cyborg's quiet laughing, confused. "What? Did I say something wrong?"

Raven spared Starfire from awkward explanations. "Where's Robin now?"

Starfire stopped blushing, frowning. "I am not sure. We parted about an hour ago because he said he had something to 'take care of'. I went to the mall of shopping."

Raven frowned, too, but went back to her book. He would most likely be back soon, Robin never stayed away from the Tower alone for an unbelievable amount of time.

"So, Starfire, know of any good places to get some chow?" Kid Flash questioned. "I'm still starving, and you guys don't have anything edible here."

"Chow?" Starfire echoed, confused at the use of the word.

"He means food, Star," Cyborg provided for her, turning off the huge television screen. "How about we all just go get some pizza—leave a note for Robin, and he'll catch up to us."

"It sounds like a glorious plan to me!" Starfire said cheerfully.

"As long as the pizza's edible," Kid Flash agreed.

Raven didn't say anything, and was extremely annoyed when she looked up to find everyone staring at her, waiting. She scowled, but no one budged. "What?" she growled. "I don't necessarily like pizza."

"Then you're not human," Kid Flash teased—Raven determinedly began reading her book again. But Kid Flash wasn't ready to give up. Cyborg moaned under his breath as Kid Flash super-sped over to Raven's seat, leaning down over her shoulder. "You can't possibly think reading an old book would be better than hanging out with _moi_," he said in her ear, his golden eyes dancing.

Raven snapped her book shut, standing up so suddenly Kid Flash had to wheel back so she wouldn't smack into him. She turned on him, navy orbs flashing. "Quite frankly, I can think of way too many things I would rather do than accompany you to a pizza parlor—or do anything with you," she said sharply.

Kid Flash chuckled, which only caused Raven's anger to flare further—objects were on the verge of flying. "Sure, Rae, you just keep telling yourself that."

Raven froze as he used the Titans' pet name for her. "What did you call me?" she asked lowly, gritting her teeth. Kid Flash raised his eyebrows, opening his mouth to calm her. Before he could speak, however, Raven leaned forward over the couch, halting centimeters away from Kid Flash's face. She glared through narrowed eyes into his, close enough to feel his hot breath on her cheeks. "Don't," she snarled.

And with that, blackness enveloped Raven's figure as she teleported to the sanctuary of her room, leaving a slightly shaken Kid Flash and two stunned friends—this was the first time Cyborg and Starfire had seen Raven that aggressive towards a team member on a day-to-day basis. It was actually pretty discomforting.

Raven appeared through the floor onto her bed, fuming. That _kid_—he _thought_ he had the _right_ to—he had the _nerve_ to—a short yell burst from Raven's lips as a painted vase on Raven's bookcase exploded and books flew from their shelves in a surge of obsidian energy. Raven ducked as shards of terra cotta flew at her, raising her head only after she heard the pieces hit the other side of the room. Mouth slightly agape, she stared at the ruined vase and the books flipped open, strewn around the floor. She rarely lost control like that, _and_ she had done it in front of people. Did Kid Flash really affect her that much?

Sitting up, Raven wiped her mind clean and crossed her legs, levitating gently above her bed. Breathing in, Raven closed her eyes and slowly began the droning words of her meditation, intent only on the balance of peace in her mind. Nobody should be able to evoke her anger like that, it was unreasonable—though she had been cleansed of her father, Raven knew her powers could still cause too much destruction unchecked. Her awareness of the world around her began to diminish and she concentrated solely on the rise and fall of the rhythm in her words…no sadness, no happiness, no anger…

_You shouldn't deny the reason why you got angry,_ a sly voice suddenly whispered in the back of her mind, breaking into Raven's increasing serenity. Her cheek twitched with annoyance, knowing exactly what was about to happen. _I didn't ask for your input,_ she thought savagely, her mind fading into itself as reality was siphoned away.

_It's about time you got it, though, you've been completely ignoring us lately! And don't even mention the fact that we're churning…_Raven snorted, opening her eyes to find a pair of deep forest green ones staring into her face. Her heart leapt for second, but she merely blinked as the eyes leaned back to reveal the face of herself. Glancing around, Raven saw all her other faces assembled in a circle with her at the center—she had only to observe her all white costume, plus the asteroid they were floating on among stars, to realize her Emotions had finally gotten a hold of her…not that she had been avoiding them or anything…

"_Avoiding!_" Bravery shrieked, green eyes rolling. "You've been running away from us like a coward!" The other Emotions nodded or murmured in agreement.

"I'm assuming you're the one who got the rest here?" Raven sighed—Bravery nodded enthusiastically.

"You betcha I did! I mean, who else, you have to have me in order to face yourself," Bravery reasoned, her deep-green cape fluttering slightly in an invisible wind. She gestured behind her to a figure clothed in all red, though she was lacking the set of six glowing eyes Raven had come to recognize with her. "Even Anger is here!"

"Yeah, I for one am certainly tired of you overusing _her_ and Fear!" Jealousy whined from behind Raven, clothed in royal violet. "I'm getting too rusty, you haven't pulled me out since Terra!"

"Hey!" another Raven, Embarrassment, wailed from Raven's right. She buried her furiously blushing face in a baby-pink cape. "I told you not to mention that name!"

"Oh, suck it up, Emmie!" Rudeness, swathed in orange, yelled exasperatedly. "You should be embarrassed over the blushes you're throwing around when Kid Flash talks to you—"

"I think he's funny!" Happiness said excitedly, clapping her hands as her bright pink cape bounced. "Though, he's not quite as good as Beast Boy, I admit that—"

Simultaneously Grief started sobbing into her grey hood and Anger growled at Happiness's words, right as another group of accusations and complaints rang out from the Emotions. Grimacing at the racket, Raven began to regret meditating in the first place; deciding to take action before things escalated out of control, Raven filled her lungs with air.

"STOP!"

All the Emotions froze at Raven's shout, attentions immediately focusing on her. With all of them looking at her, Raven turned in a full circle, assessing who was there and who wasn't—and it seemed like more than most were around her. "Okay," she began, "either as a group you can all tell me what's bothering all of you, or I'll go back to ignoring your thoughts completely. Choose now."

The Emotions glanced at each other, and Knowledge suddenly stepped up from the circle, adjusting her glasses and yellow hood. "Alright, even though it's psychologically impossible for you to ignore us all completely, I'll address the more pressing concern: too many Emotions are out of control, as we witnessed downstairs with Kid Flash. And we have yet to come to terms with each other."

Raven stared at her Emotions, wondering why exactly they had needed to come to her as actual beings—usually, as a whole, she and they functioned together as one. Only a few times had her Emotions spoken to her as a congregation, and without the use of the enchanted mirror. Why now?

"We're speaking to you like this because we're having trouble working with each other at the moment, as I just said," Knowledge answered. "Why else would we be shouting at and about each other? Our control seems to have left us, Raven. So organize us, and then we won't be such a bother—for at least some time."

Raven crossed her arms as her Emotions waited expectantly. "How am I supposed to help if I don't know why there isn't control?"

"You know exactly why there isn't any control." Raven shivered slightly at the raw power seeming to be contained in the darkly rasping voice of her Anger. The red cape hugged Anger's figure as she continued. "You would be blind not to derive the reason why I surface every time Kid Flash speaks too much to you."

"Face it, Raven," Grief said thickly, tears still running down her gray face. Raven looked down at the ground, not wanting to face it. "Kid Flash reminds you of—of _him_."

"You're not being fair to yourself." Raven swung around, to come face to face with the soft face of Love, magenta cape flowing. "You can't deny the truth: you _did_ care for him, you—"

Raven collapsed, harshly sitting down on the cold asteroid rock. Grief was moaning softly, hiccups escaping here and there. Knowledge pushed her glasses up her nose. "He may have moved on from the Titans, but you _haven't_ moved on from _him_."

Shaking her head slightly, Raven stared at her hands folded limply in front of her, stubbornly trying to ignore the words of her own mind—but she knew she couldn't any longer. Raven glanced up at the figures gathered before her: Knowledge gazing at her expectantly, Grief quieting her cries in anticipation, Happiness concentrating seriously, Anger waiting like a quiet shadow, Embarrassment bashfully twirling a lock of hair, Fear standing still for once, Love smiling warmly. An image flashed before Raven's eyes, dancing forest-green eyes watching her with care etched into every fiber of their being. Raven sighed deeply, and looked back to the ground. "I know."

Bravery reached down to where Raven was sitting and pulled her up. "You've faced yourself, now," she told Raven, "but you still have to face him."

"But how?" Raven asked faintly, her eyes remaining fixed to the cold, hard rock beneath her feet. "I don't know what to say, when to say it, how to say it, or even where I can find him! Am I supposed to just—"

A hand found its way to Raven's shoulder, and she looked up into the sparkling magenta eyes of Love. "You will have to decide how to express us to him on your own…but only when the time comes," Love instructed her softly, giving her shoulder a little squeeze of comfort. "As for where he is, you know how to find him."

"But…" Raven trailed off as Love and her other emotions began to move away from the knot they had formed around her. "I still don't understand why…"

The Emotions were joining hands in a complete circle now, with Raven at the center. "Just trust yourself," Knowledge called from her place, "and us."

"We will help you," Bravery assured, "when we are needed."

"Any of us," Anger rasped.

"At anytime," Happiness added.

And with that, the Emotions filled Raven's vision as a swirling mass of white, engulfing her until she snapped out of meditation, eyes opening to the familiar sight of her room. Sighing, Raven gracefully dropped down from hovering in place, stretching as she glanced at the time. Not quite an hour had passed; it was nearing five, which meant that all the other Titans were long gone for pizza. Raven smiled—finally, there would be some _quiet_. And thinking of her Emotions' words, she knew exactly what she would do with it: maybe it wasn't exactly the confrontation needed, but Raven could improvise. Sort of.

Raven was up on the roof of the Tower in minutes, preparing for an out-of-body experience. She had done this more than once, but Raven had no idea how long this particular instance would take. Hopefully a certain _someone_ wouldn't decide to zoom his irksome self home, looking to have hell rain downed upon his head before she got the chance to finish. Raven's face remained in a painful scowl at the thought while slipping into the deep meditation necessary to perform the wanted task. "_Azrath, Mentrion, Centhos_," she droned…but instead of her surroundings decreasing in awareness, this time she opened herself up to them, taking in everything she could. She was excruciatingly aware of the lapping of waves against the shore many stories below her, the whispering a breeze against a group of trees nestled between some rocks; she felt the slight sway of the Tower in the wind through her very being, the soft warmth of the early-evening sun against her skin; she inhaled the choking smell of pollutants and gasoline, weaving in and out of the scents of saltwater mist and faint late blossoms. A fish floundered in the water somewhere beneath her, a red-tailed hawk glided through the sheer blue sky some forty feet above her; a motor boat skidded across the surface of the bay as it headed out to sea, a cargo-truck blared its horn at a laborer in the way as it pulled into the piers. A woman laughed energetically as a seagull cried out to fishermen emptying their catch onto the dock, the smell of fresh-baked bread made the mouth of a ten-year-old boy water as a dolphin tittered happily while leaping through the Pacific waves, a business man cursed as he tripped on a can in the middle of a street as a college-student jogged across the bridge, a group of kids exploded from a movie theater as a helicopter roared through the jungle of skyscrapers of downtown as a carpool headed home for the day laughed extensively at a dirty joke on the radio as a policeman ordered black coffee at a local diner for his beginning shift as a pet-sitter exerted a failing effort to keep all her clients' dogs in check at the city's central park as an executive locked up the doors of a meeting room as three boys raced through streets on bikes as a mother tried to calm her screaming child as a cat wandered aimlessly through an alley—

And suddenly Raven was there, soaring across the bay to the town, voices and sounds rising and falling as she whipped past various scenes and places, though her physical body hovered motionlessly on the very top of the Tower. Images were merely blurs of color, although she knew of what and whom and where as clearly as if she was standing in each spot watching the going-ons beyond intensely…but there was one situation she was specifically searching for. In her mind's eye, Raven pictured the one person she wanted to find amidst all these others, exactly as she had last seen him: the snapshot of him meeting her gaze, gripping his suitcase as winds from the helicopter buffeted them severely, an arm thrown up to shield himself. Keeping that image in her head, she allowed herself to be pulled towards him, pulled by a miniscule current in the turbulent river of life. But however miniscule, it was enough.

With what seemed like barely seconds, Raven's neck-breaking flight began slowing as she drew parallel to an old, yet classy building of apartment units, a small parking dock next to it. As if on a billow of air, Raven raced up the side of the building until she was level with one particular window, then glided through the wall and stopped, rather abruptly. Somehow, without truly knowing but still knowing with a screaming inclination in her gut, Raven knew exactly where she was…

In his room.

She gazed around at the bland, pale white walls, noticing the half-open closet door revealing two boxes yet to be unpacked. The bedroom certainly appeared inhabited, though: the unmade bed, with its rumpled sheets, a dirty shirt hanging off the bedroom's doorknob, a cluttered dresser, with one drawer open to reveal thrown-in clothes, a night stand with more clutter and a digital clock flashing the time, tennis shoes lying in a messy pile at the foot of the bed. Raven frowned at a bottle of cough medicine among the clutter on the dresser. The corners of Raven's mouth tugged a bit as she observed an early issue of the _Doom Patrol_ comics laying among the clutter on the nightstand, underneath the clock. So maybe he wasn't so far gone after all.

For the next couple of minutes, Raven inspected the room leisurely, recognizing little habits that she had come to realize he had over the past couple of years, finding it hard not to smile fondly at the habits, and noting changes about the belongings in the room. Besides the comic and the view from the window, which she noticed included a glimpse of the Tower on the bay, Raven saw no other sign connecting to the Titans—what Raven suspected was being kept in the boxes. Otherwise, the room was just another teenage boy's hiatus from the world. _As it should be,_ she told herself firmly.

_As it should be…_

Breaking into her thoughts, the door to the bedroom was suddenly thrown open, causing Raven to start violently. Frantically she backed up to the far wall of the room before she realized no one could see her; she was only a spirit extension. Raven calmed herself down only for her heart to leap into her throat as her mind caught up with what was happening—Raven more or less gulped at the figure coming through the door, half-grinning and eyes sparkling with some amount of exhilaration. Though Raven had moments before convinced herself that nobody could know of her presence, she instantly felt an overwhelming sense of…nakedness…as _he_ walked into the room. She fought a strange fear that begged her to flee back to the safety of her body atop the Tower, not understanding why she was so unsettled. This was who she had been looking for—there was no reason for her to turn tail now, especially since she ran no risk of being discovered. _I wanted to do this, and there's no reason to be frightened,_ Raven thought, staring down at the floor through transparent feet. There's no reason to be frightened.

A muffled voice coming from somewhere outside the room brought Raven's attention upwards, just as the door closed again. "Alright, just let me shower first," came the all too familiar voice, "I'll be out in a sec." Until now, Raven had kept her stare anywhere besides where it needed to be—but now she forced herself to look as floorboards creaked across from her, realizing this might be the one time she could. It had been a few months since he had left, but he had always been at the back of her mind. This was something she had to do to keep peace for a little while longer. _Even if it is just only a little while longer,_ she thought guiltily.

What met her eyes was an ordinary teenage boy.

Raven stared as he made his way over to his bed, wet from head to toe, dumping a damp towel and along with some sand on the bed and tossing off sandals onto the floor. Even at the far side of the room, the brisk scent of saltwater and seaweed drifted over to Raven. She didn't know what she had expected, but a wave of relief suddenly seemed to wash through her; though his skin was a far cry from green, Raven knew Gar Logan. She could deal with him. He was just…human. Shaking her head, Raven chided herself—of course he was human! She chuckled nervously at her thoughts, at how ridiculous the whole situation was. _Make sure he's okay_, she thought, _and that's all I'm here for._

At first glance, Gar Logan didn't seem all that much different since the last time Raven had seen him, running towards the helicopter. But the longer she watched, the more subtle changes she saw: his red hair was a bit longer, curling lightly around his ears as it slowly dried. Freckles still painted his nose, but more diminished due to a slight golden tan. He seemed a little taller, too, now that Raven thought about it…as Beast Boy, Gar had been at least an inch shorter than Raven. Now, though, it appeared that Raven had an inch or two to go. And…and…there was something else different about him, too, but Raven couldn't put her finger on it. She halfway sighed—she never could.

Raven was torn from her observation when Gar began shaking out his towel, disturbing the still air and sending sand flying. He grimaced as some hit his face and Raven shielded her face with her hands even though the sand went right through her presence. As soon as he was done, Gar went over to another door and hung the towel up to let it dry. Satisfied, Gar nodded…and began taking off his shirt. Petrified, Raven's mind flew back to his words upon entering the room as she felt a small blush begin. _He's not _actually _going to—?_

As if for Raven's dignity, however, Gar halted in his actions, forest-green eyes focused intensely on the small window leaking in sunlight instead. He walked over to the window and tossed his shirt on the bed, a longing look on his face. Curious, Raven came up behind him peering out the window to see what he saw, but only seeing a shadow of the Tower as the sinking sun glared off its glass and steel outfit. Raven looked at his arms crossed tensely across his chest, and gave a sad smile. _So maybe he hasn't quite moved on yet, either._ She made a move as to touch his shoulder, but her translucent fingers expectantly brushed through.

Gar abruptly wheeled back, taking his gaze away from the view with a muttered, "Whatever." He made his way to a small bathroom beside his bed, shutting the door with a dull smack. Raven stared at the door from her original place by the dresser, holding a hand thoughtfully to her chin. She felt calm and content, though with what she wasn't entirely sure. A hushed roar of water dashing through plumbing broke the silence in the room, and Raven readied herself to depart. But just as she was about to do so, the door to the bathroom opened and Gar entered the bedroom once more.

Staring directly at her.

A rushing noise filled Raven's head as he strolled straight for her presence, his forest-green eyes boring into her. As he neared, Raven went numb with the shock of what was happening. There was no possible way! Yet he strode ahead confidently, slowing a step away from her, reaching towards her, and…he began digging in the open drawer of the dresser. Raven froze as he passed through her, stunned, but relieved. She faintly felt the warmth of his body around her, and in turn felt her face heat faintly. Blinking, Raven felt her face heat further at the panic that had enveloped her seconds ago, and further as Raven again reminded herself how ridiculous her predicament was at the moment. Praying no one was observing the rest of herself, and therefore her reddening face, at the Tower, Raven stood stock-still until Gar rose from the drawer, a new set of clothes for after his shower in hand. As he turned to walk back to the bathroom, Raven did the only thing she could really do…

She fled.

About to close the bathroom door, though, Gar Logan turned back to stare at his dresser once again, a troubled light in his eyes. The sound of water hitting the sides of the shower tub rang harshly through the silent room as he continued to stare at the spot for a few minutes, his brow furrowed. Then as suddenly as he had turned, Gar turned back, shaking his head with a muttered, but also tired, "Whatever." The bathroom door shut firmly.


	16. Flashback 2

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Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

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**

"_This has to be it."_

"_What makes you so sure?"_

"_It HAS to be, Mel. It just has to be."_

_Most of the laboratories in the building were empty, most of the lecture-halls deserted. Most cars were gone from the parking lot, lamplights flickering on as the sunset faded, the bugs beginning to chirp night symphonies and drone lazily as accustomed to on a stifling August night. Most people on the campus had already left, or were heading out to do a night's work—for it was a little past nine-thirty on Friday night, and most people were setting out to pa-arty. One laboratory, however, was still lit with fluorescent light, instruments whirring and computers whining. Two students hovered over their work alone, the other colleagues that were a part of their team long gone to enjoy the weekend. But Mark Logan and Melina Ragonu had been too engrossed with their work to stop; you could say they weren't exactly like most people, either. _

_Seven years had passed since the day that marked the beginning of considered adulthood—otherwise known as high school graduation—and the two friends had spent four of those years at the local state university, along with several other high school familiars. Three years had passed since the day of graduation from college, and the two friends had yet again accompanied each other on a new horizon, this time by the name of graduate school. Currently they were studying under the wings of very prestigious scientists, Mark intent on exploring and utilizing the new ideas and almost incredulous topics concerning genetics, with Melina concentrating on becoming one of the best human geneticists around. Both worthy and challenging goals for the two of the top students of the class._

_As of now, both were leaning over a small box-like machine, covered with gears and gizmos, wires connected left and right to a huge battery, a transparent glass chamber inside, and a mighty console pad of which streams of data and numbers flickered on the screen. It was their end-of-term group project, though the rest of their group had since retired already—but Melina was perfectly happy about being alone with Mark studying and analyzing something the both enjoyed and felt excited by. And she didn't really mind leaning up next to him, watching his brow furrow in thought as he stuck out his tongue ever so slightly; it was a habit he had picked up over the years and Melina thought it was rather charming, though in a ridiculous sort of way. _

_At her lack of reply, Mark turned his head towards her, his nose inches from hers, question in his forest green eyes. Melina looked down a little too quickly, her face heating a bit at the fact that she had been caught watching him, and forced her mind to business. The mechanism the two were observing had been more or less a challenge given to Mark and Melina and the other top students in the class by the professor, though the original idea had been Mark and Melina's. Over the years, Mark had become more and more attracted to the theory of the 'missing link' between humans and animals at a genetic level. Melina had followed along, intrigued by anything having to do with genetics at all, and together they proposed that the link could be isolated by isolating certain genetically shared bonds between animals and their ancestors, and therefore the possibility of creating an almost reverse-evolution cycle opened. And that's just putting it simply. With a tad of guidance from their professor, the two researched and developed plans for constructing a machine that would be able to isolate certain genetic sequences. This particular device was the first step towards that grand finale, carried out by Mark, Melina, and the other classmates in their project group. _

"_I don't know, Mark," Melina replied to Mark's earlier exclamation as she guardedly watched him eagerly reach over to activate the contraption in front of them. A faint whining filled the room as he switched on the battery. "Last time it didn't go to well…and shouldn't we wait until Dr. MacVerick gives us authorization? We're supposed to be doing this under supervision."_

"_Aw, come on Melina!" Mark practically whined, sounding like a two-year-old wanting to bet a new toy. "Last time our calculations were off, and we were stupid enough not to bother with checking our hypothesized thesis—"_

"_And if I remember correctly," Melina interrupted, a playful gleam in her eye, "It was your idea to bypass that, when I said we should not…"_

_Mark cringed at the reminded failure. "Whatever," he sniffed with mock-arrogance, causing Melina to give a little giggle. Then his genuine enthusiasm returned: "But that was last time! This time we've both checked and re-checked our calculations, the rest of the group went over them to, and MacVerick did approve of our thesis—"_

"_Exactly! He only approved this, and seeing as this is a group effort we should wait for the others," Melina shot back at Mark's inclinations. Her voice wavered, however, and Mark knew he almost had her. _

"_Think of this as a trial run…we shut it off quickly if anything goes wrong, which it won't, and if it goes right success is guaranteed!" Mark reasoned with her, throwing his arms up at the end to emphasize his excitement and certainty. _

"_I don't know…I still think that Dr. MacVerick should look over our calculations, too…" She continued to resist, glancing down at the clipboard she held, pen ready in her hand. Mark raised his eyebrows in exasperation, and Melina gave in. "Oh, fine! But just one 'test' run, okay? One. "_

_Mark pumped his fist in the air, more or less skipping over to the potted plant next to the lab table. Humming, he slipped on elastic gloves and grabbed a potted plant near the window as Melina double-checked everything about the machine as lights turned on inside the chamber. If the experiment worked correctly, they should be able to delete the group of genetic sequences from the plant's genetic code—this time the sequences giving the plant the ability to produce chlorophyll—by bombarding the plant with derived radiations that would hopefully break apart _only _those sequences. If the experiment didn't go as planned…Melina shuddered to think what _could _happen._

_By the time Mark had walked back over to where Melina was waiting, the potted plant in his gloved hands, Melina was tapping her foot impatiently. Grinning at her, Mark opened the chamber and slipped the plant into the compartment. Stepping back, Mark let Melina close and secure the chamber. He went over to the control pad of the machine, Melina still by the machine as she flipped through the clipboard one last time, eyes scanning the numbers and symbols. Mark cleared his throat, and Melina met his gaze as he waited for the ready signal. Excitement and anticipation was written all over his face, while doubt and anticipation was reflected in hers—but might as well give it over with so he would behave the rest of the night. Heaving a sigh, Melina gave a curt nod and looked towards the machine, hoping for the best._

_With Melina's nod, Mark entered numbers and triggered the machine. "Missing link, here I come," he whispered breathlessly as the machine began to drone, drowning out any other sounds in the room or from outside. Both Mark and Melina watched as light began illuminating the chamber, the table it sat on shaking a little. "Temperature ready," Mark called over the noise, making Melina start. "Now filling the chamber with Uranium-22; now emitting beta particles through the chambers." Mark threw some switches and the droning increased for a second. Melina glanced anxiously down at the clipboard. _

"_Phase two, emitting type one radiation to chamber," Mark called again flipping another switch. The noise grew once more. "Now emitting type two radiation to chamber." Another switch, more noise. Melina watched the machine nervously, the table shaking violently. Then, her mouth fell open in amazement—the plant in the center of the chamber began to change color…it began to turn black. Starting from the stem, the shadow appeared to flow throughout the plant like fluid, spreading to the leaves of the plant slowly but surely. Melina jerked her head towards Mark to see his reaction to what was taking place in front of them: he was grinning like a maniac. He saw her looking at him, plus the amazed expression dominating her face, and gave a wonderful, carefree laugh. Melina felt herself give a little smile as well, blushing faintly at the adorable look of pure joy on Mark's face. She shook her head, though happily; she couldn't believe this was actually working!_

_Suddenly, a pulsating hum crescendoed over everything, interrupting the excited atmosphere. The shadow that had been consuming the plant halted as if blocked by a brick wall, and the color transformation ceased. Seeming quite stunned for a second, Mark began messing frantically with the controls. Shaking her head, Melina glanced at the clipboard again, flipping through their calculations as the pulsing continued. _We celebrated too soon, s_he thought as she scanned the pages—then she stopped as quickly as she had begun. She stared at the figures on the paper, and her eyes widened. _

"_MARK!" she screamed over the noise. " SHUT IT OFF! The natural frequency of the atoms' electrons! We configured it wrong!" Mark was shaking his head in denial, still trying to gain back control of the experiment. "Mark, LISTEN TO ME!" Melina tried again, desperately trying to steady herself against the shaking table. The noise was now almost unbearable. "We have to! We have to shut it off or else—" _

_Then the whole world exploded in Melina's face.

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_

**A/N: Hey, I'm back! But I just have to say, so no one gets confused—I have NO idea about what I just talked about in the above chapter. So I apologize for everything I might've blown to out of proportion, because all I know about genetics is what I learned in my biology class, a little physics for the radiation part, and an academic competition…so yeah. And NO, isolating missing links and reversing evolution CANNOT be done as of now, or else it would they would've already done it and found the cure for cancer or something. **

…**Oooh, but I DO have a reasonable explanation for the plant turning black, so HAH!**


	17. Part 3: It's Never That Simple

**Author's Note:** I'MMMMMMM BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCKKKKKK! And God _bless_ summer vacation, let me tell you! I'm really, _really _sorry about how I suck when it comes to uploading chapters within weeks of each other, but since the beginning of summer I've been extremely busy. Let me tell you, it is a relief to finally be in the house I've been moving into all summer…and between that, summer camps, summer jobs, summer work, and babysitting my family's new puppy (she's so CUTE), I admit that I haven't had a lot of time to spend on this fanfic. It's funny actually, here I am with summer vacation ending and I've only been on one vacation so far—my grandparents' house (their food is GURD, yeah). At least they live on the beach. So anyways…..I figured that I'd better put up something so this wouldn't be dismissed as another dead, or otherwise unfinished, fanfiction (I WILL finish this!). And I didn't want you to think I was dead, either, because you guys are the only people who appreciate me in this bitter, unfair world! YAY! (oooooh, and the puppy cares, too! I feed her :P) Oh yeah, and watch out for typos…sorry for any in advance.

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**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

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**

_Rat-tat, rat-tat._

Newspaper clippings, wanted posters, various mugshots, and open files of different sorts, all glared down in the faint, overhead lamplight, from their pinned places on the wall. More newspapers and magazines littered the long desk against the wall, both splayed open and still closed. A laptop sat on the far corner of the desk, screensaver dancing up and down, adding a flash of color here or there to the dim setting.

_Rat-tat, rat-tat._

A couple reference books were stacked on top of one another against the desk, either on psychology topics or with genetic themes. On a small but long table at the center of the room, more newspaper clippings rustled slightly in the quiet breeze coming through the ceiling vent. On top of the clippings, mechanical tools and metal parts with wiring spilling out were laid. Next to the pieces, a small silver sphere—or at least what used to be a sphere—glinted in the lamplight, the owner of the other parts.

_Rat-tat, rat-tat._

Amidst it all sat the famous Boy Wonder, feet propped up on the desk, masked eyes staring up at the dark ceiling, tensely tapping an overused pencil against the paper-covered surface of the desk.

_Rat-tat, rat-tat._

For the past four hours, Robin had remained in this room, shutting of his communicator and trusting the alarm system of the Tower to let him know if he was needed. So of course he shouldn't have been surprised when the door to his personal study swooshed open, letting the shadow of Cyborg's tall ad muscular figure fall into the room. But with the typical reaction of one deep in thought, Robin started out of his chair and nearly knocked the desk over in the process.

Cyborg raised an eyebrow at the birdarang Robin's hand had somehow found and the fighting stance Robin had taken. "Feeling jumpy much?" Cyborg asked dryly, moving further into the room as the door slid shut behind him.

Robin sweatdropped, and the birdarang disappeared under his cape as he slowly sat down again in the chair he had abandoned seconds ago. "I wasn't expecting company," he stated, crossing his arms at Cyborg, who was gazing at the clippings on the wall.

"Huh? Well, you should expect something when you turn off your communicator for four hours and you're no where to be found," Cyborg replied, bringing his attention back to the team leader and away from the collection on the wall.

"Did anything happen?" Robin asked, picking up the pencil he had dropped on the floor at Cyborg's entrance.

"Nope, not really," Cyborg said cheerily. "Just came up here to bug the hell out of ya. Starfire and Kid Flash went to the mall after going downtown to help with a normal bank robbery, and Raven told me where to find you. I think she went with them, too."

"Find me?" Robin echoed, placing the pencil on the desk. "Why?"

The slight smile diminished from Cyborg's face as he grew serious. "It's not to someone's benefit when they shut themselves up in a room for more than a couple hours everyday." Robin opened his mouth to protest, but Cyborg shook his head and went on. "Face it, Robin you're obsessed again…I've only seen you like this once before, when you were hunting down Slade. And I think I know what you're obsessing over this time…" Cyborg gestured towards the table, where the remnants of the silver sphere were—silver remnants that Cyborg and Robin had gathered while back at the scene of the Main Street collapse a day after the event happened.

Robin glanced to where Cyborg pointed, and sighed. "Is it a good or bad thing, then? To be obsessed about helping…"

Cyborg winked. "Remember that you've got a whole city to help, too, is all I'm saying." Cyborg looked around the room, and spotted the reference books—his eyes narrowed. "What I wanna know is this: you've got a hold of something new, don't you?"

Robin stared at Cyborg.

"I mean, don't try to deny the truth—you had pretty much given up on the case…" Cyborg picked up one of the books on genetic sequences, and flipped through. "But this renewed rigor?"

Robin was still staring at Cyborg when the half-android looked over at him, putting the reference book back in its place. "You have an eye for things, man, I'll give you that," Robin said, leaning back in his chair.

"Yeah…but I'm not the only one who's noticed."

Robin looked down at his hands. "Remember how everybody's favorite caped crusader requested a certain somebody's genetic mapout?"

"You actually gave it to him? I thought you might've been a tad pissed when he asked, but I wasn't exactly sure, you know…" Cyborg winked again.

"Cute. But seriously, you can safely assume when Batman decides to help, his help is worth accepting." _Even if I hate to admit it,_ Robin added silently. He hated to admit a lot of things, lately.

Cyborg nodded absently. "So were you right? About trusting his help?"

"Absolutely."

* * *

"**_Meet me at the coordinates I'm about to send you—once you arrive, you'll see me no doubt."_**

"_Right. You gonna tell me what this is about?"_

"**_You'll be happy enough when you find out for yourself. And it's best we don't discuss it over a signal that can be traced and picked up. Besides, I thought you liked surprises."_**

"_You thought a lot of things about me."_

"**_That I did. Don't shoot me down. I'm sending the coordinates now."_**

"_Got them. You better not be wasting my time."_

"**_You shouldn't speak that way to someone who's willing to do you a favor."_**

"_I didn't ask you for any favors. And if this is about what I'm starting to think this is about, I definitely didn't ask you to do this."_

"**_I take it back—I'm not doing it for you. By the way, change clothes if you get the chance. It wouldn't be a good idea for you to waltz in here wearing green tights and a cape."_**

"_They're not tights, and you wear a bigger cape."_

"**_But I'm not wearing one now. I expect you in fifteen minutes, over and out."_**

_The communicator inside Robin's helmet gave a small beep and the soft crackle of static resumed, signaling that the conversation was more than over. The night was a good one for cruising through the suburb streets of Jump_ _City, stars starting to twinkle out from the blanket of darkness enveloping the sky as the last of fiery orange and red sinking below the horizon. The hot air of the day_ _was slowly cooling in a moist breeze blowing in from the bay, and the bright, colorful lights of downtown silhouetted the city against the sunset. All was peaceful with the onset of the night—until the R-cycle gunned through the streets, engine roaring as it sped top-speed to the coordinates labeled and glowing on the visor of Robin's helmet. Cape whipping behind him, Robin silently apologized for the disturbance, but if he knew anything he knew that Batman_ would _expect him in fifteen minutes; and as much as he hated to admit it, Robin would_ not _give_ _Batman the chance to call him on tardiness. _

_Robin sighed into his helmet, steaming up the visor a bit, and wondered exactly what Batman would present to him as soon as he showed up at the appointed rendezvous. It had to be important if Batman had the nerve to pull him out of…an outing…with Starfire. His old mentor rarely interrupted his personal life, or life in that matter, anymore. And if this was about what Robin was now more sure of than not, it was an action somewhat understandable—but only if the news was absolutely terrible or absolutely excellent. On the plus side of it all, Robin had been able to tell Starfire had been rather disappointed that their time together ended so abruptly, which left Robin feeling guilty but with hope. _

_It didn't take long for Robin to pull up behind a small, almost run-down diner further into the suburbs. The neon sign reading_ 'open' _flickered repeatedly in the fading light, and a few cars were parked in front of the diner, people grabbing a bite before heading home from work or whatever. Robin carefully observed his surroundings as he guided the R-cycle to a spot between a huge dumpster and the side door of the building. Deeming the area secure, a few minutes Robin walked out from behind the diner, vigilante costume discarded and in its place sneakers, worn jeans, a black shirt, and a lightweight tan jacket. Shades covered his eyes, though the use for them was definitely absent, the moonlight now gently spilling to the earth from the night sky. _

_The quiet tinkling of a bell filled the diner as Robin pushed open the door, causing a middle-aged, tired-looking waitress to lift her head from fooling with the cashier behind a counter directly opposite of Robin. She nodded to him, then went back to pounding buttons. A steady beeping of a timer going off echoed into the diner from the kitchen in back, the smell of fresh-baked bread and fried foods wafting out as well. Low murmuring came from a small television mounted on one of the walls, and the only conversation in the diner was between two men sitting in a booth on the far side of the diner, with the occasional soft laugh or chuckle. All the other customers were sitting on stools at the counter, bent over their food—except for one, of course, who was staring directly at Robin from his seat in a booth to Robin's right. _

_Robin waltzed over to the man, sliding into the seat opposite of him, and said matter-of-factorly, "And how are you, Mr. Wayne?"_

_Bruce Wayne, the famous industrial billionaire of Gotham City and otherwise the equally as famous vigilante Batman, raised his eyebrows as Robin sat across from him. "Sun glasses, Dick? A little off on your timing, you know."_

_Bruce himself was dressed in casual wear, a cap pulled over his head to give some protection of his face—no one would recognize him as Batman, that was for sure, but it would be just as disastrous if somebody recognized him as his billionaire self, too. A leather suitcase and a shoulder bag occupied the space beside Bruce in the booth. Robin's eyes flickered towards the suitcase and bag, wondering what contents they held. "Next time I'll bring a cane so my disguise is more complete," Robin replied to Bruce, unsmiling. Bruce just raised his eyebrows again._

_The tired-looking waitress Robin had seen upon first entering the diner suddenly appeared next to their booth, small tablet in hand and reaching for a pen behind her ear. "Felluhs," she greeted. They both turned their attention to her. "What can I getchuh for this evenin'?"_

"_Just two coffees, ma'am." Bruce's gaze flickered towards Robin, who remained sitting impassively._

"_Decaf?"_

"_No thanks, ma'am. And could you bring some extra cream?"_

_The waitress nodded, and went back over behind the counter. After a few moments, the clanking of dishes could be heard in the kitchen. A breeze blew in with the tinkle of the door opening as one of the men from the counter departed. Faint music from the television began as the evening news switched off, leaving commercials for perfume to garage tools. Robin remained silent as he and Bruce waited for their coffee, the latter staring distractedly out the window. Robin was itching to know what exactly this meeting was about now more than ever with the mystery suitcase and bag mere inches away, but forced himself to keep still and not fidget. He couldn't believe how relieved he was when the waitress finally brought out the coffee, along with a few creams. As soon as the waitress left and Bruce fixed his coffee to his liking, Robin could hardly take it anymore. _

"_So?"_

_Bruce looked up from the coffee at his voice, and saw the faint lines of anticipation on the unhidden part of Robin's face. With the corner of his mouth tugging the tiniest bit, Bruce reached into the shoulder bag and pulled out some papers, sliding them across to Robin. Immediately picking them up, Robin scanned the content of the papers while Bruce sipped at coffee. Robin was glad the sunglasses hid his dread and slight puzzlement with every new page he read. By the time he had finished looking through the stack, Bruce was watching him intensively, one hand still around his coffee mug. Robin glanced from the papers, to Bruce, and back again. "So," he said again, laying the papers on the table. "What does it mean?"_

_Bruce took another sip of his coffee, carefully watching Robin and fighting a little bit of his own inner battle. He knew what he was about to discuss with his former pupil could quite possibly crush him, anger him, and give him false hope at the same time. And Bruce didn't necessarily want Richard to suffer more…it was unfair for this…it wasn't…_

_Bruce set down his coffee rather lazily. "What it means," he replied honestly, "is that I've been able to figure out the extent of…damage…that's been done to your friend." Robin looked at him expectantly. Underneath the sunglasses, his left eye twitched. _

"…_I just don't know how to fix it."_

_

* * *

_

"—Wait a second, are you saying that Batman freaking figured out what happened that day?" Cyborg interjected excitedly as Robin told him exactly what he had been doing that Saturday while the rest of the team were stuffing themselves with pizza. Robin watched as Cyborg began pacing back and forth. "That's amazing! Now all we have to do is get him to send his research to S.T.A.R.R. labs, and they could probably cook up some reverse radiation that could do the trick! Why didn't you bring this up before, Robin? Now everything…"

Cyborg suddenly trailed off, realizing the team leader wasn't exactly jumping around in a spasmodic fit of joy. "But it's not that simple, is it?"

Robin gave an almost bittersweet smile, and shook his head. "No, it's not that simple…it never is."

* * *

_Robin didn't reply instantly to Bruce's remark, his mind racing in circles as he processed what he had just read and what Bruce had just said. The papers Bruce had handed him were various lab analysis and research on nothing other than Beast Boy's genetic code—and Garfield_ _Logan_'_s genetic code, for that matter. Robin was guessing Bruce had compared the two genetic codes front to back, and had compared the changes between the two and analyzed the differences versus a considerably 'normal' human genetic code. After a while, the reports were too complicated for Robin to understand, hence the skimming, but he had gotten the gist of what the subject matter consisted of. Finally, he made his mouth move. _

"_So…"Robin's mind was racing behind his mask of a face, more rapidly than before if possible. "You…can tell us…what happened?"_

_Bruce stared at Robin, noting how slowly and hesitantly he spoke. Smart boy, trying not to set himself up for disappointment. Bruce sighed, and casually glanced around the restaurant to make sure everyone was minding their business. He had already went over the place for any suspicious stuff, but it never hurt to be sure. Then Bruce took a last sip of his coffee, put the mug down, and leaned forward with his elbows on the table. He knew this would be a long discussion._

"_You know his past history, correct?" Bruce began. Robin nodded slowly. "How he contracted the disease known as Sakutia while in Africa, and his father 'cured' him? Good. It is important to know that the type of radiation that our friend was given as treatment for the disease has a specific isotope signature—that is to say, an extremely unique signature."_

"_A traceable one?" Robin interrupted, wondering what Bruce was getting at._

"_Yes, a signature that can be traced, tracked, found very easily; but only if you know what you are looking for." Bruce paused and shuffled through some of the papers he had given Robin, straightening them. "And what you are looking for could be anything subjected to the radiation, seeing as the half-life of this particular isotope is extremely long—almost sixty-three years, I believe."_

_Robin raised an eyebrow in question at that comment, but let Bruce continue knowing all his questions would more likely than not be answered in time._

"_Now when our friend's Sakutia disease was cured, his father was the only known scientist on the globe to actually be working on a particular mechanism that would isolate the common ancestral gene between different species—which instead he used to isolate the Sakutia in his son's body and cause it to go into a dormant state." Bruce paused and shuffled the papers some more. "Sakutia is a rare virus that disrupts the human body at the genome level; the virus is actually capable of writing false DNA codes and rewriting original ones. It tears apart the body molecule by molecule. But there is one known radiation, the type I spoke of earlier, that can stop Sakutia…but in the process, due to reversing the already 'whacked' genes the virus causes, the victim's genetic code becomes unstable by chain reaction, and: tadaa! We already know what that results in, a living human circus. _

"_Unfortunately, there was only one scientist that managed to 'cure' the effects of Sakutia—our friend's father—and the secrets key to that disappeared into the vast, African jungle just as his life did. Many still don't understand exactly what happened inside our friend's body, and it doesn't help the fact that he refuses to participate in a few trials, either."_

_

* * *

_

"Okay, so that was a complete background check of everything we already _know_," Cyborg commented impatiently, interrupting Robin once again.

Robin eyed him. "Yes, but hold on a second—Batman didn't tell me that info for lecturing purposes."

Cyborg cocked his head a little in curiosity. "What do you mean by that?"

"Just keep listening, and you'll see." As an afterthought, Robin muttered, "Besides, not everyone has a computer for memory, so…"

"What was that?"

"Nothing…"

* * *

_Bruce had laid out two papers from the stack in front of Robin, and now watched as the boy studied them. He was silent for a couple minutes until Robin looked up from the papers. "So…this one is the metahuman mapout and this one—the human mapout?"_

_Nodding, Bruce enforced Robin's suspicions. "Yes," he said. "And both are of the same person. Before a certain dosage of a certain radiation, and afterwards."_

"_But…" Robin reviewed the papers one more time in a glance. "These analyses determine there are few drastic changes in the genetic code, then. How is that possible? I saw, along with the rest of the team, that the changes were _definitely _major!"_

_Bruce nodded absently, as if half-agreeing with Robin's words. "You're right. I had a private team of geneticists help me with this research, and those results are supposedly foolproof." Bruce suddenly gazed intently at Robin, then, any thoughtfulness gone. "But that's not even half of it. One thing that puzzled the scientists and myself is this; the entire human genome has been practically decoded and recorded by now. However, an interesting pattern surfaced in the genetic mapout of our friend after the said radiation—after he became 'homo sapien' again. It was another code, similar to one found in the metahuman mapout, but at the same time completely different."_

_Robin peered at Bruce, questioning._

_Bruce sighed. "The only explanation for this mystery…gene, perhaps?...is rather unpleasant. But according to the comparisons and research made, it's the truth. As a metahuman, our friend was protected from the Sakutia virus; in his body, the disease was dormant, therefore the cause of his powers. As an ordinary human, however…" Bruce hesitated, shaking his head._

"_What?" Robin suddenly asked, almost fearfully. A sense of impending doom came over him. "What is it?"_

_Bruce stared directly into the shades that Robin's eyes hid behind. "The loss of his powers signified a reverse of the dormant state of the disease. Garfield_ _isn't safe from Sakutia any longer."_

_

* * *

_

"Oh, snap." Cyborg's human eye widened in shock, his mind registering in nanoseconds what exactly that meant. "You can't be _serious._"

Robin just sat silently.

"But…but that means…" Cyborg stumbled around his words, his eyes staring beyond the wall he was glaring at as he went over all the possibilities that it _did_ mean. Then his gaze suddenly switched to Robin, eyebrow twitching. "And you've been SITTING on this since _Saturday_! What's wrong with you, man?"

Robin winced at Cyborg's raised voice, the exact reaction he had predicted from the half-android. "I know I should've said something earlier—"

"Why didn't you say something EARLIER?" It appeared that Cyborg wasn't paying Robin any attention. "This is terrible, both for us and the city!"

"Cyborg."

"We can't have an outbreak of a rare, fatal, African disease—"

"_Cyborg_."

"Along with the possible death of—"

"_Cyborg!_"

Cyborg stopped ranting, realizing that Robin was up out of his seat and yelling at him. "What?"

Robin sighed, rubbed his left temple, and sat back down. "There's nothing to worry about. There won't be—"

* * *

"_An outbreak!" Robin whispered fiercely across the table at a seemingly unfazed Bruce. Robin had been 'yespering'_ (**A/N: **yelling while you're whispering…quite the oxymoron) _at him for the past two minutes, and Bruce decided it was best for the kid to get it out of his system. _

"_Why didn't you come to me sooner, or at least let me know this issue was a bit more urgent! We have to put him in quarantine or something. I could be facing a pandemic of a rare, fatal, African disease by this time! How could you have let me give Garfield_ _the boot when—"_

"_The Sakutia virus is only passed from bodily fluids of a _monkey _to those of a _human_?" Bruce interrupted. Robin instantly shut up, mouth still a tad agape. "Relax, Richard, Sakutia isn't an airborne virus, like influenza, but instead is more like rabies…but even less contagious than that. Sakutia isn't a communicable disease, and cannot be passed from human to human easily. Look at it this way: Sakutia is now a part of Gar's genetic code…that's the way the virus works, and why it's so confusing to scientists and so rare in the world. The only way Garfield_ _could pass along Sakutia would be to…donate blood or someth—actually no, that wouldn't even work. While Sakutia bonds to a human's DNA after it is transferred from the monkey's body, it wouldn't bond to another human's DNA because it is already in the grafted state. As a gene or DNA strand, not as a virus, and most humans don't go around absorbing other people's DNA, so technically—"_

"_BRUCE!" the waitress and a few of the customers glanced over at Robin before turning back to whatever they had been doing. "Bruce," Robin said a tad more quietly, "you lost me…so. You're saying that we don't have to worry about him transmitting the disease?" Bruce blinked, and nodded. "Good. How do scientists—or you for that matter—know so much about Sakutia anyways…I thought it was a rare and mysterious disease, not an article in the encyclopedia."_

"_How? From the only survivor of the rare and mysterious disease, of course." Bruce shook his head. "Why else do you think he has an extreme fear and hatred of hospitals? Germ phobia?"_

_Robin stared._

"_But back to the point." Bruce cleared his throat. "The fact that the virus isn't contagious is a relief, but not the major problem here. Garfield_ _is the one with the Sakutia disease…and you've probably already ran across the thought that although he has survived the disease once—" Bruce paused and took a sip of his now lukewarm coffee. "—most likely he will not survive it again."_

_Robin was silent for several minutes, having an inner battle for control; Bruce could see that much. It was understandable—he had just told the teenage hero the detail he had known but did not want to admit. This was difficult news for anyone to take, especially for an individual used to saving everyone and fixing everything. Bruce knew the feelings Robin was trying to cope with right now, seeing as the Dark Knight had dealt with them countless times before already._

_So of course he gave a bittersweet smile when his former sidekick asked in a forced nonchalant way—_

_

* * *

_

"So what do we need to do?"

Robin smiled when Cyborg asked the exact same question he had asked Batman on Saturday, unwilling to give up. He sighed in response, though. "I'm not entirely sure, Cyborg…that's what I've been trying to figure out with four hours of solitude."

Cyborg snorted. "Whatever, man, quit the leader act for a minute." Robin looked over at Cyborg, who was now staring determinedly at the wall right above the door of the room. "Look, whether you want to admit it or not," Cyborg began softly, "the whole team, all of us were friends since the beginning…and now, we're more likely than not something _more_. Starfire and Raven are going to be upset, and more than a little, when they find out about this…because we _are_ going to tell them." Cyborg glanced at Robin for conformation, but his gaze was met by the back of Robin's head. "We have to go get him," Cyborg continued, "and tell him the truth. S.T.A.R.R. labs might have something that can help, and maybe the radiation can be developed again—Batman sounded like he knew what he was talking about, along with all those scientists from before…"

"No, Cyborg."

Cyborg's brow furrowed in anger at Robin's firm voice. He opened his mouth to angrily counter Robin, but instead—

"Remember, Cyborg? It's not that simple. It never is."

* * *

"_The disease hasn't awakened yet, Richard, simple as that. Or, well, I guess it's not that simple, when you read into it…" Bruce took a sip of his now nearing-cold coffee._

_Robin frowned. "Hasn't awakened? Do you mean—"_

"_Yes, it's still dormant. There's still time. But right now, I'm going to tell you to take thirty seconds of that time and tell me what all this means. Push to the side everything you're feeling right now, and just tell me what this all means."_

_Robin glowered. "Who says I need to listen to you?"_

_Bruce didn't speak, just watched Robin. After a grumble, Robin did exactly as he was told; and in under thirty seconds, his eyes widened under his shades in realization. Bruce smirked into his coffee, interpreting the slight jaw-drop Robin gave for what it was. "And what does it all mean?"_

_Robin slowly crossed his arms, seeing all the connections Bruce had pointed out to him with an emphasized point, and lecturing tone, a detailed description."But who? Who would do such a thing and who would have the technology to do it?"_

_Bruce took another sip of his now cold coffee. "I'm glad you don't believe in coincidence either, Robin." He waved the waitress over._

"_Yessir? Oh, it'll be three dollahs and sixtah-seven cends."_

"_Here, then. Keep the change."_

"_Thanks, fellahs."_

_Getting up, Bruce took the stack of papers and slid them back in the shoulder bag. He waited for Robin to get up, then took the suitcase out from its spot in the booth and handed it to the Boy Wonder. Bruce nodded to him, saying so only he could hear him, "Take care, Robin."_

_And then he was gone._

_

* * *

_

Cyborg was leaning against the wall once again "So what was in the suitcase he gave you?"

"A disc."

Cyborg raised an eyebrow. "A disc?"

Robin nodded. "A disc of all the research he had done so far, including the files I had looked at in the diner, records from the scientists he had hired, and millions of leads."

"So, he was handing over the investigation to you?"

"Probably. But I think he'll come up with a few interesting details every now and then. It's not like the Batman to let go of a case without his own follow-up and theories."

"He'll be helping then."

"Yes."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

Cyborg let out a long, low whistle. "This is trouble."

Robin rose from his seat and began pacing back and forth in front of Cyborg. "We have somewhere to start with, because we know two things: one, the perpetrator has at least one accomplice."

"Right, the noir attacker at the street collapse," Cyborg agreed. "But what's two?"

"He or she has to have known Mr. Mark Logan, currently deceased." Cyborg's attention zeroed in. "He is the only known scientist, as Batman pointed out numerous times, that had been working on the type of radiation and technology able to isolate genes. And thankfully, the technology needed to save his son. Technology very similar to the type used by the attacker. Radiation with an isotope signature very similar to the type used by the attacker."

Cyborg nodded. "We'll start with old friends, family, colleagues."

Robin grabbed a disc that had been sitting on the desk. "Here, I want you to take a look at this, copy everything to your database, and study every detail."

Cyborg took the disc from Robin. "Right. But let me ask you a question, Robin. Why didn't you tell us? Why didn't you tell the team? Some bastard is trying to kill _our_ _friend_, as far as we know. And something tells me you haven't been buddy-buddy about this with…a certain Garfield Logan, either."

Robin shook his head. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, Cyborg, but…word _can't_ get out about this, okay?" Robin stopped pacing. "Like you said, if Starfire or Raven find out, they will not be pleased—and I don't want anyone doing anything rash. We can't let whoever's after Gar find out that we're on their tail; we'll lose any time we might have right now if they decide a fatal disease moves too slow."

Robin looked over and glared at Cyborg for a response. "Okay, man," Cyborg said after a slight hesitation. "I understand. But also understand that if I have to, I will do what I think is best for my friends' safety. _All_ of them."

"Fair enough. Just remember, behind-the-scenes you should work on this case as if your life depends on it." Robin's eyemask narrowed.

"…Because someone's _does_."

* * *

"What. The. Hell. Is. That."

Starfire grinned foolishly from behind one of the most revolting things Raven had ever seen in her entire life. It was pink. It was _hot_ pink. It was tiny. It was _really_ tiny. And most repulsively, Raven noticed it was in her size. _Her_ size.

"Isn't it most delightful?" Starfire sighed, the stupid grin still glowing on her face. She was completely oblivious to the horrified and disgusted grimace Raven had on her own face. "When I asked the man of the clerk what the expected summer attire for a young woman at Earth's beaches is this year, he pointed me directly towards these wonderful pieces of clothing!"

"Really now?" Raven asked in monotone, continuing to eye the pink bikini warily.

"Yes!" Suddenly Starfire frowned. "But in all honesty, I believe this is very similar to the suit swimming that I acquired my previous summer on Earth, though the man of the clerk assured me it was the 'latest buzz in fashion'. Kid Flash also told me it was 'sexy'." Starfire's lower lip protruded slightly as she searched her mind for the meaning of the word. "That is good, is it not? To be 'sexy'?"

Raven rolled her eyes. Kid Flash would be the one to say that…"In a way," Raven replied to Starfire's curiosity. "I'd rather not explain."

Starfire raised her eyebrows, but then her face lit up again as she remembered what she was holding out to Raven in the first place. "I bought a suit swimming for myself, but this one I acquired for you, Raven! You are in need of at least one for this summer, I know this! And Kid Flash recommended this particular suit." Starfire smiled brightly. "He said you would be 'very sexy' in this selection."

Raven struggled to keep her temper and reddening cheeks in check. "_Did_ he now?" she said through gritted teeth. The nerve. "I'm going to _kill_ him."

Starfire's happiness was replaced with worry as she sweatdropped, feeling very tiny as she realized Raven's anger. And that was the exact moment none other than Kid Flash decided to show up—or rather, blur up.

"Okay, ladies, who wants some food? There's _still_ nothing edible in the Tower, so I took the honor of grabbing some hot dogs from the food court—plenty of mustard like you asked for, Starfire—and…what?"

Kid Flash interrupted himself, noticing Starfire was giving him the most pathetic, apologetic look, and Raven was quite coincidently throwing him a death glare. It took him two more seconds to notice the pink bikini Starfire was clutching in her hands, and then a smirk slowly spread across his face. Snickering, he commented slyly, "What, not the gracious type, Raven?"

Starfire put the swimming suit back into the shopping bag that already carried her own as Raven's temple twitched. "Please, friends," she said nervously, "let us return to the Tower and feast upon the heated dogs, and forget this business of killing—"

"Normally, I would pound you into the ground right about now for giving Starfire ridiculous ideas," Raven dryly informed Kid Flash, leaving Starfire with a hopeless look on her face.

"But I'm too cute for that, right?" Kid Flash grinned at his wit, but the grin disappeared as Raven's eyes turned white and her hands glowed with obsidian energy. "Whoa, calm down! Besides, you should've seen the clerk's face when he was helping Starfire—now _that's_ perverted—er, ignore that last comment!" Kid Flash eyed the tendrils of energy creeping towards him. "I'll—geez, okay, I'm gone!"

Kid Flash vanished in a blur of yellow and red, heading back to the Tower and leaving Raven with a slightly satisfied feeling as the black energy dissipated. Starfire had watched the whole thing from behind her shopping bag, and now heaved a sigh of relief. "So you will not kill the Kid Flash, then, Raven?" she asked hopefully.

"Not today," Raven said wryly. Starfire simpered, and Raven turned towards her with narrowed eyes. "And how did you know that I needed a swimsuit for this summer?"

Starfire sweatdropped again, and immediately gave a nervous giggle. "Um, of course it did not have anything to do with entering into your room uninvited, Raven! I would never do that! Now I must…return to the Tower! Yes! And…enlighten friends Cyborg and Robin about the 'latest fashion buzz' for this summer! Farewell!"

Raven watched as Starfire hastily departed. "She. Went. In. My. _Room_." The muscle under Raven's left eye twitched, and she prepared to teleport back to the Tower. Being friends with a perky alien did have its downsides.

"The kid was _supposed_ to be '_ere_ an HOUR ago!"

Raven turned at the sound of the yelling, looking for the owner of the strongly accented voice. Several other people were looking around, too, annoyed that the moderate buzz of conversation bouncing through the mall had been interrupted. It didn't take long to find the culprit, for he was exasperatedly waving his arms at the skylights above, seated on the edge of one of those indoor mall fountains, not too far from Raven. Probably a little older than Raven herself, his bleached-blond hair stood out from the rest of the crowd, along with the bright yellow t-shirt adorned with a huge smiley-face he was wearing. His accent sounded like he was Australian or something. Looking like the typical high school student out to make a little racket with his friends, Raven turned again to leave once more until she heard by chance one of his friend's reply.

"Chill, Nick, Gar said he had a doctor's appointment—things like that can take a while, you know."

Raven froze, and turned once more to actually look at the bleached-blonde; he was rolling his eyes, and surrounded by a group of about six people—four guys, two girls. They all were high school students, too, and had pretty much the same style as the Australian guy…Nick. Most were wearing black or rocker-styled clothes. Raven couldn't decide who had replied to Nick's outbreak, but she was suddenly, and a bit guiltily, interested in the conversation. Realizing that she _was_ a Teen Titan, and still in costume, Raven racked her mind for something to do. She, Starfire, and Kid Flash had attracted a fair amount of whispers and stares while they had been browsing the mall at Starfire's request. Raven was sure she would attract even more attention than that if she was to remain staring blankly, and quite frankly a bit stupidly, at a group of normal teenage-civilians.

Luckily, it _was_ a group of high school kids—_Spencer's®_ was almost right across from the fountain the group was hanging out by, and that was the type of store Raven didn't mind staring pointlessly through the window at. It would at least be normal, Raven concluded as she sauntered towards the store, listening carefully to the group. She used her powers to diminish others awareness of her, so somebody wouldn't randomly come up and ask for her autograph or something: a useful trick she had learned to use on the Titans' outings early on.

Another one of the guys snorted at the last remark. He was shorter than the other guys in the group, but still had an athletic build—his head of dust-brown hair shook back and forth as a wicked smirk crawled across his face. "Who says Nick actually cares about Gar? He's just upset because he can't scream 'NOOGIE!' and scare the _shit_ out of any old people nearby."

Most of the group laughed at this, and Raven raised an eyebrow.

Right…

"Aw, shuddup, Michael, you're just disappointed that Benji wouldn't lend you the five bucks you needed to buy that album back there," one of the other guys chuckled.

Michael sniffed. "System of A Down _deserves_ to be bought by me, and if I remember correctly, you're the one who owes me those five bucks, anyways. Benji won't be giving you any money, either."

John crossed his arms across his chest. "Five bucks? For what, dork?"

"I bought lunch for you Tuesday cuz you left your lunch money at home."

"Tuesday? No I didn't!"

"Not last Tuesday, three weeks before that."

"What! No way, man, you're lying!

"Am not!"

"Yes you are, asshole!"

"Who you calling asshole, bitch!"

"WHAT? Why you little—"

Raven rolled her eyes as the two began a scuffle. It didn't take long for John to get Michael into a headlock, and Nick plus a dusty-blond guy to get involved trying to break it up. One of the two girls, a redhead in a black tee and shorts, shoddy skater shoes adorning her feet, was rolling her eyes, too, annoyance and exasperation written all over her face. Exactly what Raven would be feeling herself, if she was in the situation. The corner of Raven's mouth tugged just the tiniest bit.

"Hmph, this is so laaaaaame. I wanted to see Garfield today, I wanted to show him something," a perky but whining voice cried over the argument going on. It was the other girl, a blonde with pigtails dressed in…well, actually, not dressed in much at all. She was wearing an extremely short miniskirt with an extremely short yellow halter-top, a shoulder bag balanced on her waist. Raven immediately disliked the girl, not because she was the perfect opposite of Raven, but because of the whiny, pitiful air she seemed to put out. Raven's navy orbs narrowed.

"Relax, Nicole, I'm pretty sure you'll see him tomorrow, if not today," commented the only guy not fighting. His hair was jet-black, and his clothes didn't differ much, either. Black shirt, black wristband, brown cargo pants. The redhead was standing next to him, and he drew her closer with an arm around her shoulders. "We'll wait a little longer, then head off to the diner."

Nicole stuck out her lower lip, pouting. "But it was really important…"

"Yeah, I bet your bust is," the redhead muttered, but Nicole didn't seem to notice. Her eyes suddenly grew very round.

"Oh no! You don't think he's _avoiding_ me, do you? What if he doesn't like me?"

The redhead threw an expression of mock horror on her face. "God FORBID! _Avoiding_ you! The chance that he got caught in traffic is less likely!"

Raven would've snickered—she was starting to like this girl. The guy next to her nudged her a little, but he was smiling. Nicole frowned, and gave a small "_hmph"_. At least she could tell mockery when it happened…didn't seem like she could really tell much else, the way the others were interacting with her.

"What is the doctor's appointment about, anyway?" Nicole sulked.

The guy shrugged, and looked at the redhead. "Yeah, Kassie, did he mention? You were the one he called, right?"

Kassie sighed. "Yep, he called about five minutes before I got here and met you guys. Sounded pretty pissed, too…" She grinned. "It was kind of funny, actually. Have you ever seen Gar pissed?"

The guy shook his head, and Nicole gave a vixen smile. "I bet he's _hot_ when he is…well, hotter than _usual_. Most guys are." She winked at the guy, who just blinked.

Kassie's jaw twitched. "Yeah. Well, he sounded pissed, but when I asked, he just said it was a check-up he forgot about. He's had a cough lately, and I think he's coming down with a cold—probably getting some medicine."

"A cold? That sucks…and finals are coming up soon."

"Psht…not for _him_!" The Michael kid suddenly appeared on the other side of Kassie, rubbing his neck. Apparently, the tussle had ended—the other three guys rambled up, as well. "Remember? The lucky bastard doesn't have to take any final exams cuz he wasn't here for most of the semester."

"A cough you said?" John asked. "I hope the doc hooks him up with some syrup…"

"Huh?"

"What?"

"You druggie!"

"Ohhhh…John, you're an idiot."

"Like that's news."

"Hey! That wasn't very nice…I'm your _brother_, you know. _Feel_ the _love_!"

"Get off of me!"

"I want some luvin', too, mates!"

"NO! Nick get _off_—"

"Argh—he's crushing me—!"

"I can't _believe_ I'm being seen in public with you guys."

"Hey, Nicole, how about some _luvin'_, sincerely _Michael_…"

"Uh, no. And don't refer to yourself in third person, loser, it's creepy."

"Ouch! Michael's _hurt_, baby!"

"Whatever."

Raven frowned slightly at the mention of a doctor's appointment. From what she knew, it would be luck if you managed to get Garfield Logan within one hundred feet of a doctor. And a cold…that couldn't be good news, either. Hopefully the radiation didn't have anything to do with—

Wait.

Raven stopped thinking, and instead stared ahead directly into her pale reflection in the store's window. She would _not_ do this; wrap herself up in thoughts of matters that didn't involve her. She was letting go, not holding on—she was checking in on him, not playing the part of a empty-nest syndrome mother. Normal kids go to doctors all the time. Normal kids get sick every once in a while. Normal kids worry about final exams and homework. Normal kids meet their friends at the mall to hang out.

"Um…excuse me, Miss?"

Raven swung around to come face-to-face with a boy around her age, wearing the _Spencer's®_ employee shirt. His hair was spiked slightly with gel, and he had various piercings in his ears and eyebrows. She blinked at him and he gave a small smile, to Raven's amusement also blushing a little. "I…er…do you need help with anything, Miss Raven? You've been hanging around outside our shop for a while now."

Raven blinked again, then suddenly came to her senses. "Right," she droned. "I apologize, I was just…looking."

Before the guy could say anything, Raven swept away. She gave one last glance at the frolicking, laughing teenagers at the fountain in front of her that had seemingly adopted Gar Logan into their midst. Raven smirked as obsidian energy surrounded her as she teleported back to the Tower, earning a couple stares from passersby. Yes, Gar's friends—if they were anything else.

Figures.


	18. Part 3: Silence Is Golden

**Author's Note:** OH MY GOLLY GOSH! A freaking chapter!

So how's everyone doing…? Heh…? Ahem. Yeah, this is that update I said might be coming during spring break, but I'm sad to say I'm still not entirely off hiatus. Read the notice on my profile for details cuz right now I don't wanna get into it. Nothing serious, though, I promise.

But anyways, about this chapter and the rest of the fanfic—this is it guys! We're coming down to the last stretch! Originally I had written one, uber-long chapter that probably could have stood as a story alone b/c of its length…heheh…but I made it into the two following chapters instead, after much debate. The next couple of chapters are the most important of the story, and the last—so I want them to be as well-done as possible. And that's right, you heard me—we're nearing the end! Looking back, I'm proud that I've come this far with this fic even though I'm not one-hundred percent satisfied. I started _Life With No Green_ when I was thirteen, and now when I look at it I understand I could have done a _lot_ more with it than I did, character- and plot-development wise, but I was just a kid while writing most of this—it was mainly a test-run, to help me develop story-telling and writing skills. I don't know if I've gotten any better, but this fanfic has certainly opened a few doors in the writer's universe for me that I never knew before now!

I already have my next fanfic planned for the Titans, and I hope it will delve more into the depth and definition of the Teen Titan characters; aspects from both the comic and the show. In my next author's note, I'm going to include a quick summary of it and hold a poll of what you guys think, though—I'm not planning on writing it if no one will read it, so be sure to give me your opinions in your reviews next time!

But listen to me, rambling on—there's still a few more chapters left to go. So hold on tight, cuz we're going for a ride now, folks! And I apologize in advance for the half-cliffhanger ending. I'll try to have more uploaded within the next couple weeks…?

Oh, and P.S.- If you're a fan of the AWESOME ninjafied anime-series _Naruto_, be sure to check out my collection of one shots I'm beginning to post called _Lasting Impressions: First Day At The Academy!_, when you get the chance. I think it's a nice little project I'm doing, worth reading if you like material worth reading…

Geez that was a long author's note. And now I'm only making it longer. Later!

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

Silence.

That was the one dominant feature of the kitchen in Steve Dayton's apartment, the only interruption of the lack of life the faint whirring of the refrigerator every couple of minutes when it crushed ice. The horns and engines of heavy traffic could still be heard from outside the apartment, but just barely; the walls were decently thick. Otherwise, all other household appliances were shut down at the time, and the apartment was full of emptiness. As if the two people in the kitchen didn't exist, at least to one another.

And it was _killing_ Steve.

"How long are you gonna stay mad at me, Gar?!" Steve finally broke, throwing his arms up with his exclamation. He had been leaning against the kitchen counter, trying to enjoy his microwave dinner in piece, but his conscience had other ideas.

Gar flinched slightly in his seat at the far end of the counter at Steve's shout, almost startled by the sudden noise. He looked up at Steve, who was leaning forward expectantly. Then he stuck out his tongue and continued to ignore his foster father as before. Steve's eyes bulged.

"Come ON! You've been giving me the cold shoulder routine since we got home Wednesday!" Steve's tone took on a bit of pleading. "Could you just grow up, if only a little?"

Gar sniffed and faced Steve. "You _tricked_ me! How is that being grown up on your part??"

Steve sighed, closed his eyes and rubbed his left temple. Yeah, so he had told Gar he needed to pick up something at his office before running Gar by the mall—and instead had driven Gar to the downtown clinic for a check-up. Gar had freaked when he realized exactly _where_ Steve parked the car—not in the parking deck of his office complex—and Steve was forced to threaten Gar with bringing the doctor out to the car until the kid had finally agreed, rather grudgingly, to go in the clinic. Steve had only had to make a trip to the doctor's with Gar a couple of times in their past history together, but Gar never failed to make any experience concerning doctors extremely similar to dealing with a colicky two-year-old.

"So this is how you're going to be. Fine…but we both know that you wouldn't have cooperated any other way, hotshot," Steve grunted.

Gar rolled his eyes, sinking his head into his arms on the counter. "Well it's not like I needed to go anyways!" he grumbled.

Steve immediately snorted. "I _still_ can't believe you thought I was so dense I wouldn't notice you hacking up a lung. And as far as I was concerned, you were far from alright with the kind of sounds you were making," Steve commented dryly.

"It was just a bad cough! The freaking doctor said so himself, and I've been taking the stupid medicine he prescribed!" Gar sounded a little more forceful than he had intended, but he was fed up with the whole deal. Steve had been breathing down his neck about the fact that he had tried to hide his cough from his foster father, and Steve refused to let up. Gar took a breath to calm down a tad, then continued. "The coughing is gone, and I'm fine. I haven't dropped dead yet, have I? So just quit worrying."

Gar steeled himself for some type of a lecture from Steve, but instead Steve's face softened somewhat at Gar's words. He sighed. "Yes, Gar, you're right," Steve suddenly consented, "I should probably quit worrying. But you understand why I was worrying, right? I mean, I know you don't like to talk about it but you aren't just some ordinary kid now, like you'd like to think…you've been through a lot."

Gar's forest green eyes met Steve's concerned gaze, and the fight went out of Gar in an instant. He couldn't help but know that Steve was simply trying to look after him to the best of his abilities—but Gar still shuddered at the thought of all those shining instruments that had laid by the sink in the examination room. None of them had been used, just a swab for Gar's throat, but the fact they were _there_ had been too much. Gar gave his head a quick shake to rid himself of thoughts, and focused his attention on Steve's face. Then he gave a small smile.

"You know…promise me something."

Steve raised an eyebrow, sensing a playful change in Gar's voice and stature. He had a feeling Gar had forgiven him, and went along. "What?"

"At least don't _ever _take me back to THAT clinic. Paralyzing fear is one thing, but that nurse kept trying to _massage_ me. A whole new territory there; usually I'm all for the attention of older women, but she could've been my grandmother…"

Steve grinned and almost threw some microwaved mashed potatoes at Gar's head. "Dream on, kid! You were as stiff as a board, she was just trying to make sure you didn't break in half or anything."

"Whatever…" Gar was smiling too, however, and some life returned to the apartment.

Suddenly the shrill ringing of the phone by the fridge shattered into the conversation. Gar jumped up from his seat, going over to answer as Steve resumed eating his dinner. Gar picked it up in the middle of its second blast, wondering for a second before he answered who could be calling.

"Hello?"

"Gar! Hey what's up man?"

Gar recognized John's voice on the other end of the line easily. He also could hear some male laughter in the background, and he assumed it was Benji or one of the other guys from the band. "Yeah, nothing," Gar answered. "Whatcha need?"

"Me, Benji and Tye are at the cafe right now; we decided to call up the rest of you guys and see if you wanted to meet at the downtown pizza parlor in about an hour. It's on me and Benji."

"Sounds cool," Gar said. It was around three in the afternoon, and Gar hadn't eaten yet that day. "I'll be there. So how was the mall last Wednesday? Kassie said you guys left early."

"Ah, yeah we only stayed for about two or three hours. Michelle was lacking entertainment with your absence, and in turn was driving Kassie crazy. Plus me and Nick had a history essay due."

"Oh, right…say, um, you don't think Nicole will be at the parlor, do you?"

Gar heard John snicker. "She has it bad for you. Man, I don't know how she figures out where we're going to be most of the time, but I can say this: blame Michael. He probably has something to do with it."

"Great…"

John laughed. "Right. So see you in an hour?"

"See you in an hour."

Gar hung up the phone after he heard the click from the other end, and turned around to a curious Steve. "Who was that?"

"Oh, just one of the guys, John. We're going for pizza in an hour or so." Gar went back to his seat on the counter.

Steve smiled at the mashed potatoes still stuck to his spoon. "Oh, okay," he said to Gar, sticking the spoon in his mouth. "Make sure you get back before I'm eighty, and don't harass any cops, got it?"

Gar grinned and made a face. "Whatever. You really shouldn't talk through mashed potatoes, though, not the best look for you…" He ducked and jumped of his seat at the counter, running back to his room before Steve could really throw the potatoes at him. That wouldn't be pleasant.

Steve chuckled as he heard the door to Gar's room shut, shaking his head a little. That kid…just that kid. He looked over across the kitchen and living room to the window, the view of the traffic-full streets below. "You know," he mumbled to no one in particular, "we might just make it yet."

He finished his mashed potatoes.

* * *

A stream of steady whispers and quiet voices echoed through the halls of Jump City's National Mutual Bank, creating the boring, busybody atmosphere that usually resides within the walls of banks—a few people making withdrawals here, a few setting up accounts or loans there. The air was a bit stuffy inside the building, so everything seemed muffled and dragging, the perfect environment for the security guard at the front desk post to be nodding of ever so slightly, and for the security camera footage to be duly ignored. Even the front receptionist was yawning, discretely texting her friend about their planned girls-night-out under her desk. It was an ordinary, if a little bit slow, afternoon…and that was about to turn around.

In more of a for worse rather than better sort of way.

The front doors exploded open in an unexpected instant, shattering the stuffy, quiet calm and giving everyone located in the bank quite a shock. The security guard jerked fully awake, jumping out of his chair and looking around wildly before he finally gathered the whole situation: dust and smoke pouring into the building, shafts of sunlight breaking through here or there, giving the atmosphere an almost twilight-zone feelings. The whole bank watched the entrance, breathless. Two shadows sauntered forward through the settling cloud of dust before stabilizing their forms with a few last heavy steps forward, emerging from the debris of the blown-apart doors. The front receptionist's eyes widened as she took in the sight before her, and her cell phone clattered to the ground.

There stood two men. With two _really_ big guns.

"Well hey there, folks! Don't you look all surprised to see us! Delightful."

The gruff voice issued from one of the figures, booming through the silent bank. The security guard remained stock still, shock written all over his face as the rest of the people in the bank. The intruders didn't really look frightening—besides the size of their guns, they were simply dressed in black jumpsuits, with orange goggles on and nothing else to shield their identities. The man who had spoken was smiling devilishly, goggles glinting in the light as his much bigger and much more silent counterpart merely appeared to gaze straight ahead indifferently. The two looked rugged enough, unshaven stubble covering their faces with nicks and scars showing battle experience—the wide, on the verge of crazy grin was not helping the atmosphere of bank. And then they decided to pick up the pace enough.

"What, y'all aren't all pleased to see us and stuff?" the smaller man, feigning a pout. "Shoot, and I was expectin' a welcome party and all that…oh well."

He shrugged, hoisted the huge machine gun he had been steadying against his hip up onto his shoulder, and nonchalantly let a volley of bullets rip through the silent building in no particular direction.

The shocked air of the bank quickly turned into to one of terror.

People dove towards the ground amid screams in an attempt to avoid being torn apart by the bullets. The criminal kept shooting for a good couple minutes, his smile growing wider with each scream. Passersby outside the bank froze and looked at each other in horror, listening to the ruckus still hidden by dust and such. It didn't take too long for people to begin running away from the scene, a few responsible souls whipping out their cell phones to alert law enforcement that something was terribly wrong. Inside the bank the man in red finally stopped shooting, his partner having remained still and silent through the ordeal. Screams dying out and everyone on the floor by now, the small man let out a bark of laughter, and then turned towards the front receptionist cowering under her desk. She gulped as his goggles flashed at her. He gestured towards the vault at the back of the bank, and promptly aimed his gun at her.

"We'll be takin' the money now, miss."

The security guard, who had been on the ground himself, finally found his senses as the receptionist didn't move, terrified beyond reason. He sprang to his feet, pulling his gun and slapping a small, red button underneath his desk as he came up. "Freeze!" he shouted, unsteadily aiming his pistol at the two robbers. "You are violating the law! Take one more step and I'll—"

With a sharp bang, the security guard jerked backwards as a bullet connected solidly with his left shoulder. A few screams sounded throughout the building again, and the receptionist squeezed her eyes shut, thinking the worst. The security guard, however, was still breathing—his cursing and gasps of pain as he gripped his shoulder testified to that. The blood began soaking through his sleeve, and he looked up with clouded eyes to see the bigger, silent man holding a smoking pistol aimed towards him. He had detached it from a compartment on the leg of his jumpsuit—his larger gun was still resting upon his hip, held by his other hand.

"Thanks, cowboy," the smaller man yawned. "That chirping was getting annoying. And you—" he directed his goggles towards the security guard, "—don't interfere if you value your life. My buddy here missed on purpose…"

The robber waltzed down to the front desk, his partner in tow, and tapped on the desk the receptionist was hiding under. "Now honey, open your eyes and use the fancy code or whatever to open the damn vault so we can get our money and get."

Before the receptionist could even think about complying, however, a birdarang whizzed through the air and embedded itself in the wood of the desk not even an inch from the hand of the man. It was then he noticed the absence of hushed cries and whimpers and whispers that had been present only seconds before; the man quickly glanced around the room to find every soul, including the bloodied security cop and excluding the still-cowering receptionist, had been vacated from the building. They were all…_gone_. Tensing up, he turned away from the desk and looked at the entrance to find a sight all criminals in Jump City had come to expect.

"You picked the wrong day to rob a bank, guys…Titans, go!"

* * *

The Titans' Tower was devoid of life and almost completely quiet for the moment save the small trickle of water dripping from the kitchen sink, a result of the hurried departure of the crime-fighting heroes. The red flashing of the crime alarm had shut off only a couple moments ago, giving the whole place an eerie silent feel. The kind of feel that nobody's home…and that everything isn't necessarily well.

If someone had been sitting inside the security room of the Tower—otherwise known as Cyborg's closet, actually—they would have been amazed at the number of monitors and gadgets and graphics, the advanced technology in general, all surveillacing the state of the Titans' Tower. Bleeping, beeping, blipping, Cyborg had put his heart and soul into maintaining the security of the Tower; which was why it was almost impossible to breach. It had only been done once in the history of the Teen Titans, and only as a result of inside cooperation—a memory of a certain earth-moving girl the Titans did not want to visit again. When Cyborg got it done, in his own words, it was _done_, baby.

And so anyone watching would have been entirely surprised when six screens on the security monitors went black, all data and signs regarding the six areas they covered wiped from the memory of the Tower's data base for…four or five minutes, more or less.

Having hacked successfully into the Tower's system, for the first time in two weeks the small mechanical toy that had taken residence in the Tower for an extended stay dared to venture out of the dark recesses of its domain. It was an odd-looking thing: black steel, eight slender probes supporting its hard drive at its center, the robotic computer looked like a metallic spider about the size of a human hand with a blinking orange light in the center of its body. After a pause from behind a shadowed corner somewhere in the vast expanses of the Tower, it quickly began scuttling through the hallways of the Tower, following the route it had laid out for itself with the help of looping and blanking out the security cameras and devices in six particular spots of the building. By passing through each of the spots, the spider-robot made its way undetected to the base of the Tower, where it rapidly made its exit from the construction through the basement plumbing. When the security cameras and such switched back to normal function, there was no glitch in the system to show a disturbance had taken place unless someone was to search the files and data painstakingly and thoroughly. There would have been nothing important about the disturbance, either, save for one thing—a robotic hacker with the whole layout and current technological data about the system of the Tower had just escaped, unharmed, and was scuttling down the beach to heaven knows where.

That could later present a _massive_ problem for the Teen Titans.

* * *

"Give it up, man, you're never gonna beat me with that hunk of junk!"

Cyborg jeered at the huge gunman he was facing off against, the two of them slowly circling each other in a defensive stance. Robin and Starfire were taking care of the loudmouth crook, easily avoiding his wild shots and scoffing at his empty threats. The Titans had quickly discovered that at least one of the two didn't have a clue about what he was doing; it appeared as if he just pulled the trigger and hoped that the bullets would hit the target he wanted them to hit. Far from expert gunmanship.

The other criminal was a bit different, though.

Arriving on the scene shortly after receiving a frantic call on the citizen hotline, and then the official crime alarm as the police got word to them, the Titans witnessed the sniper-like shooting the larger man had performed when taking the security guard down. Even if his partner was a loudmouth know-it-all-about-nothing idiot, this guy knew what he was doing: both Cyborg and Robin could tell from his stance and calm demeanor. Immediately, Robin had ordered Kid Flash and Rave to evacuate all the citizens inside the bank without alerting the robbers—easy to do for a super-fast superhero and a teleporting one —and then the Titans finally let the robbers know of their presence. The smaller man obviously egotistical and arrogant as long as his hands were on a gun instantly fired and took on the leader of the Titans. Cyborg drew the obviously expert gunman away from the rest of the group, seeing as he had an arm that could transform into a sonic canon in an instant and his body was…well pretty much all titanium and steel. Bullets couldn't really make metal bleed.

"Come on. Put the gun down and I'll make it quick and painless. Promise."

The gunman was pointedly ignoring Cyborg, however, continuing to circle. Cyborg rolled his eyes, exasperated. Surely this guy didn't think he could take him on. Even an idiot would know better than to aim a gun at a steel wall—Cyborg had to admit, being more than half-machine did have its perks at times. Anyways, Cyborg had already formed his arm into the infamous cannon, and focused intently on the gunman, thinking a good intimidating stare might do it. Of course, now that he though about it, s good stare was hard to muster with those orange goggles flashing in his eyes. Cyborg started to get a little uneasy. He couldn't tell where the gunman was looking, and it was freaking him out a little. Out of the corner of his vision, Cyborg saw Raven suddenly appear up in the air near him, most likely done helping Kid Flash the citizens to safety. Looking out of the other side of his peripheral vision, he saw that Robin and Starfire had already managed to unarm and knock out the other gunman. He smiled, his confidence back—this would be over soon.

It was then that Cyborg's opponent abruptly stopped circling, standing up straight and peering at Cyborg through his orange goggles. Startled, Cyborg rose too, watching the gunman dumbly, not sure of what to think. The guy was actually listening to him? That was a first in the history of bank robbers. The gunman drew about five or six extra pistols and handguns from pockets and compartments on his jumpsuit, causing Cyborg to tense up again, but then the gunman merely threw them all on the floor with a loud collection of clatters. Cyborg's human eye widened, then narrowed suspiciously. Something didn't seem right.

The gunman slowly raised his last gun, as if he was going to drop that to the floor too…and did precisely that. Cyborg's face got the most surprised expression on it, and he glanced up at Raven to see her eyebrows raised as well. But both had failed to notice one important detail in the stance of the robber—he didn't look defeated in the least. As Cyborg turned back to face him, the gunman fluidly reached into yet another pocket in the back of his jumpsuit and pulled out another automatic in a movement nearly too fast for the human eye to follow. With a long string of _ratt-a-tat-tatts_, the lights across the bank's ceiling erupted in a storm of sparks and glass, causing all the Titans to cover their faces with their arms, squinting against the lights of the explosions. It took a couple moments for the sparks and lights to cease, the dim sunlight leaking through the demolished doors now the source of light for half the building. Squinting against the last of the sparks raining down from the ceiling, Cyborg realized the gunman was gone, along with his unconscious partner. Shaking his head, Cyborg saw Robin running towards him.

"Don't even ask me, man, cuz I don't know," he said as Robin skidded to a stop in front of him. Raven and Starfire floated down, and Kid Flash suddenly blurred up to meet them. The Titans stared at each other in silence for a minute, listening to the wailing of sirens from outside.

"Well," Raven droned, "that was certainly odd."

The Titans chorused in agreement. "No kidding," Cyborg said, "I thought for a minute the guy really was surrendering—and then—_bang_!—and he made his escape…"

Robin scratched his head thoughtfully. "They didn't attempt to try to get what they came here for, attacked us as soon as we showed up."

There was a pause as everyone mulled over the enigma.

"At least the security guard got off okay," Kid Flash said enthusiastically into the quiet. "They'll remove the bullet in surgery soon, they said."

More silence.

"Aw, come on! Everyone's alive, not to mention that Robin and Starfire kicked that guy's ass! Count that as success, right?"

Cyborg grinned and Starfire giggled at Kid Flash's remark, lightening the mood some. Even Robin smiled a bit. Raven glowered, but didn't say anything. She was learning once again how to let things go, in a torturing kind of way.

"Yeah, let's save pondering over this crap for later!" Cyborg agreed. "It's almost five and I'm HUNGRY, so I say let's go for pizza!"

"Ooooh, yes, I love the parlor of pizza where they serve the most delicious consumption of mustard! I concede!" Starfire exclaimed, soaring into the air.

Robin chuckled. "Just let me go wrap things up with the police and I'm for it, too."

"Alright!" Kid Flash pumped a fist into the air and dashed out of the bank. The rest of the Titans followed in his wake, chatting about this or that as they made their way towards the circle of police cars waiting at the entrance of the bank.

* * *

The parlor was crowded—as in hardly-any-air-to-breathe, bodies-pressed-too-close-together-for-comfort, smell-beyond-smelling-like-shit crowded. But then again, going to famous pizza parlors on Saturday evenings usually tend to be that way—it's just a fact of life. Still, Gar wasn't too pleased when he walked up to the restaurant to find the waiting line extending from the front doors down the sidewalk to the parking lot of the parlor. Gar groaned—he hated lines, unless there was no choice to wait in it for something he absolutely _must_ have. And that usually solely involved videogames.

"Gar!"

Hearing his name, Gar turned around to see Michael waving his hands in the air at him, jumping up and down and earning a few glances from passersby at his ridiculous windmill actions. Behind him, a few more of the group were waiting, talking amongst themselves or watching Michael get Gar's attention, standing under a tree near the restaurant's entrance …looked like it was John, Tye, and Nick in addition to Michael, with no sign of Benji or Kassie, and thankfully no sign of Michelle, either. Gar jogged over to the boys, smile on his face.

"Hey man," Michael greeted him as Gar came up to the group. "Glad we caught you."

Gar raised an eyebrow. "Caught me? What's up?"

"That _line's_ what's up!" John exclaimed from behind Michael. "We decided there's no _way_ we're waiting that long, no matter how good the pizza is. Not worth it."

Nick and Tye nodded in agreement. "We've already called Kassie and Benji," Michael continued, "and they suggested this other place only a couple blocks away. They're heading down there, and we decided to wait for you and then go."

"Okay," Gar said. He had been to this pizza parlor only a couple of times before now, with his friends and once with Steve, and didn't really see "Let's go."

Not too much later the boys were sauntering down the sidewalks of downtown Jump City, laughing and yelling and having a good time in general. Most were giving the loud group a wide berth, so the walk wasn't taking too long.

"So what is this place, exactly?" Gar asked Michael after they all finished laughing at one joke or another. Nick and John were further up ahead, chasing each other down the sidewalk after John decided to give Nick a wet-willy. Tye fell into step with Gar and answered his question instead.

"I've been to it once before, and I can't remember what it's called, just that it has some good pizza. Kinda small, so it's not always as crowded as the other one."

"Yeah, I've actually never been," Michael commented from the other side of Gar. His eyes twinkled mischievously, for a second. "But how much you wanna bet Benji and Kassie frequent it to get some quiet lovin' in every once and while?"

"_Gross!_" Tye and Gar shouted simultaneously, Gar shoving Michael in the shoulder. Sometimes the guy let his mind go where his mind just _shouldn't_ go.

"Hey! Here we are mates!" Nick shouted from up ahead, pointing around a corner to the right. John had already disappeared behind it, and Nick followed suit. Michael, Tye, and Gar soon rounded the corner as well, and watched Nick and John cross the street to run into the mystery pizza parlor.

Gar just about had a freaking heart attack.

* * *

"Ah, I can smell the tomato sauce and pepperoni in the air!"

"Mustard! Do not forget the glorious mustard!"

The Teen Titans walked through the doors of their favorite pizza parlor in town, Starfire's eyes dancing with the prospect of mustard in the near future, Kid Flash's smile doubling at the thought that his stomach would soon be satisfied, and Cyborg's mouth drooling rivers at the reported smell of pizza cooking in the back. Robin simply grinned at his teammates' reactions to the place as he did every time, and Raven wondered if she could they could get a table inside for once, maybe a private room so she could read without the wind ruffling the pages of her current reading book…

"Hey, Jason! A table on the patio as usual, please," Cyborg boomed at the host, dashing Raven's hopes. She sighed.

"No problem," Jason smiled, grabbing some wrapped silverware from the bucket beside the host podium. The tanned, medium height, brown-haired, brown-eyed college student was more than used to seeing the Titans at his father's restaurant. They had been serving the Titans from the beginning after all—Jason was one of the few citizen-friends of the crime-fighting group, and one of the best they had discovered so far. He didn't let his jaw fall open and stare in shock like the other, less frequent employees and customers did when the Titans waltzed in; instead, he began good-humoringly talking to Robin as he led the Titans out to the patio. The restaurant was busy at a relaxing pace, only half-filled versus the crowded ones further into town. Anybody who knew Jason or his dad and their relationship with the Titans always asked the same thing: why didn't they advertise their business with the teen heroes, and gain the crowd the other parlors boasted? The answer was always simple, too…the workers of the place and the Titans had come to some sort of silent agreement—the service the restaurant provided the Teen Titans was treated as any other service. The Titans didn't want to be advertised, and enjoyed eating their meals in peace as any other group of teenagers would. In turn, the customers who weren't regular provided enough advertisement about the food and the off-chance of seeing the Titans there provided a steady, but not overwhelming, influx of money. The Titans also ordered more than enough pizza whenever they showed up, for sure.

"Just finish bashing in some butt of an unlucky criminal?" Jason asked Robin as he opened the door to the patio seats.

Robin nodded, ignoring the short scream and crash that sounded from the other side of the patio as some fangirl noticed the Titans' presence and dropped her drink. "Yeah, a couple of bank robbers."

"Ah, is it ever anything else?" Jason laughed, setting the silverware down at a patio table kind of secluded from the rest—moved ever so slightly away from the restaurant, overlooking the busy street below. The whispered exclamations of "Is it _them_? Is it really _them_?" could be heard from across the patio now, but both Jason and the Titans ignored them as they were seated.

"Now let me guess what you want to drink," Jason said with a playful tone to his voice. He pulled out a pad of paper and a pen and tapped his lip in a mock-thoughtful manner. "Robin, the plain old Pepsi—Cyborg, the plain old Mountain Dew—Raven, the herbal tea—Kid Flash, the…Pibb Extra? Yeah, I thought so—and who could forget the mustard for Starfire." He grinned as the Titans chuckled. "I'll get those out for you, and Kasey will be over in a minute to watch you guys fight over what kind of pizzas you want."

"Thanks, Jason," Robin called as Jason walked off, waving a friendly hand over his shoulder. Cyborg and Kid Flash began arguing loudly over what type of pizza they would order, Raven rolled her eyes and glared down at the street, Starfire began chatting with Robin about the wonderful aspects of living organisms, and the friends enjoyed each other's company.

* * *

"Gar, you look about five shades paler than usual. Are you okay? "

Kassie's concerned voice broke into Gar's dazed state, and he turned to face her. She and Benji had arrived about two minutes ago, the rest of the group conversing happily in the waiting area of the restaurant—besides Gar, who was more or less cowering in a corner. Of all the _freaking_ places in the city, they had to choose _this_ one? _This_ freaking particular pizza parlor? This _had_ to be the famous, unnamed pizza parlor? Gar could have died, if it wouldn't have caused a commotion. Peachy, just peachy.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Gar lied through his teeth, smiling.

Tye leaned over and put his arm around Gar's shoulders, nudging him a bit. "Medicine can take a toll one people sometimes. Either that or he's scared to death Michael's gonna go off and call our favorite blonde before he can stop him."

Michael chose right at that minute to waltz up. "Great news!" he said excitedly. "Nicole's dropping by in about twenty minutes! Just got off the phone with her."

Kassie and Tye stared at him for about two seconds, then burst out laughing. Gar just groaned. Could this get any _worse_?

"Are you ready to be seated, gentlemen…and lady?"

Jason addressed the whole group as he came back from somewhere in the back of the restaurant, a warm smile on his face.

"Yeah, mate," Nick spoke up from his leaning position on the host podium. "I think there's about…seven of us? Yeah, seven, mate."

"Actually, there _will_ be eight!"

Those who hadn't heard Michael's earlier announcement now cursed and groaned. "Michael, you fag, you _didn't_," John said, rubbing his temple.

Jason looked at the group, confused beyond reason. Benji shook his head and said from his spot beside Kassie, "Just ignore them, man. We'll take a table for seven."

"Yeah, ONLY seven. Just seven people. Maybe if there's no room she'll go away."

"Can we sit outside?"

"Oooh, yeah! On the patio! I wanna throw french fries at people on the street!"

"Okay, there's plenty of tables—"

"NO!"

Everyone turned around and stared at Gar, astounded at his outburst. With all eyes on him, Gar shifted uncomfortably and scratched the back of his neck. "I mean, uh, I have allergies. Bad…bad allergies. Yeah."

They continued staring at him. "Ooookay," Kassie said, breaking the silence and turning to face Jason again. "Can we just have a seat by the window?"

"Yeah, I think I can do that," Jason remarked, grabbing silverware wraps and nodding. "Right this way."

The group began chattering again, choosing to ignore Gar's exclamation and seemingly accepting his explanation. Heaving a sigh, Gar followed the group trying to keep his face from turning too red—at least he wasn't abnormally pale anymore.

* * *

Raven leaned on her elbow, cheek resting in the palm of her hand as she watched the traffic scurry down the street below. She tried to act uninterested in her friends' happy conversations talking about this or that, but couldn't help blinking or smiling the tiniest bit at some of the remarks that were thrown across the table. Their drinks had arrived a short while ago, and Kid Flash and Cyborg had decided on two types of pizza long enough to place an order. Starfire, as usual, had managed to derive the strangest choices for the toppings on her pizza and yet again the waitress had to tell Starfire toppings like whipped-cream-relish did not exist. Raven could have believed it was just another afternoon with the Titans like they used to have back when…but she knew soon her temper would be ignited as a certain _someone_ decided to try to socialize her and gain something in return. Lately, she had been compassionate enough to spare the other Titans' misery by simply concealing her annoyance and anger until she was in the safety of her room—thinking about other things than the flapping of that buffoon's mouth while he was talking usually helped, too. Her navy eyes followed the wayward path of a stray dog on the street until he relieved himself on the pole of a parking meter, spraying someone's Mitsubishi in the process. It would only be a matter of time…

"Is that dog pissing really _that_ interesting, Raven?"

And there it was.

Raven rolled her eyes and ripped her attention away from the street to find Kid Flash's twinkling eyes and smile focused on her. "Not particularly, just enough to keep my attention over your ramblings," Raven droned in response. Cyborg snickered and Starfire continued to rattle off different types of mustard she wanted to try, she and Robin oblivious to anything else but each other.

"Maybe you'd find our ramblings more interesting if you actually joined in?"

Raven picked a place behind Kid Flash's head to stare at, observing it with the intensity of a two-year-old watching a wanted toy. "Naming moves and scores of videogames? No thanks."

"Ha! So you _were_ listening!"

"No, you're just that predictable." Raven watched the window behind Kid Flash, determined not to acknowledge how familiar this conversation was sounding. A bunch of kids were sitting in a large corner booth, she could see them laughing and joking around through the window…she wondered what they were talking about, they all seemed to be having such a good time…

"Ouch, that hurt," Kid Flash pouted, referring to Raven's last comment. Nonetheless, his bright eyes still twinkled. He leaned forward, closer to her, knowing she was attempting to ignore him. "But then again, if we're so predictable, it shouldn't be too hard to try and join in, you know?"

Raven sent him a glare out of the corner of her eye, and continued watching the kids through the window. She raised her eyebrows—it looked as if one of them was throwing salt from a shaker…it was hard not to snort in exasperation. She may be creepy, but at least Raven wasn't flat out _weird_—how most kids she saw now tended to be acting.

"It's not the joining in," Raven replied to Kid Flash absentmindedly, "It's the inability to maintain a constant stream of interesting, intelligent conversation with you." She narrowed her eyes a bit at the group…some of the faces seemed familiar, almost jogging her memory…but she couldn't place why she felt recognition…

"What do you think we're doing right now, huh?" Kid Flash continued, unaware of Raven's distracted air. Cyborg had already put in his opinion about mustard with Starfire and was now vividly discussing the delicious-factor of hot mustards, ignoring the look Robin was giving him for intruding on the conversation—no way was he gonna be involved when Kid Flash hit a nerve. He knew better than that.

"Do I look like I'm interested?" Raven shifted in her seat, trying to get a better view of the group. "Because I am definitely far from—"

She froze.

It was…_him?

* * *

_

Gar sat at the far end of the booth, fake smile in place as he tried to hide the fact that he was terrified. The rest of his friends were loud and rambunctious, tossing bad jokes and insults at each other like beads during Marti Graw. But the mere possibility of running into the Titans here…why did this have to be their favorite hang-out spot, besides the mall? And why did his friends have to decide to go here, of all the pizza parlors. Gar was close to silent despair, watching his friends kid and laugh through clouded eyes. His day was just not getting any better, either, with Nicole on the way…maybe she'd get in a wreck, or a bus would hit her…yeah, that'd be nice…

As Gar pictured Nicole's curvy frame being obliterated by a huge, blue bus, Gar suddenly shook his head. Wait. _What?_ Whoa whoa whoa…he was NOT going to do this. Yeah. No reason—he had no reason to be freaking out. Sure, he was in a building that triggered a bunch of painful memories for him, but he was making new ones to replace those, right? He, Garfield Logan, was out with his friends and had no reason to be afraid of some big, bad, teenage superheroes. Because he was Gar Logan, and didn't need any superheroes…and stuff…yeah. And the chance they would be at this very restaurant at this very moment eating at this very minute? Very slim. Yeah. _Slim._

"Yo! Gar, I'm talkin' to you!"

"Huh what?" Gar looked up from his lap, just in time to receive a face full of salt. Eyes squeezed shut, he sat there for a couple seconds before slowly reaching up and brushing the shit off his face. "_What?"_

The rest of the table was finding this hilariously funny—only Kassie stopped laughing long enough to gasp, "You okay?" Nick was laughing the hardest, salt shaker still gripped in his hand. Gar rolled his eyes and shook his head, wondering exactly what _kind_ of new memories he was creating. He would _get_ Nick back for that, he just had to think of how…

"Ahem."

The group immediately quieted to see a barely smiling waiter standing at the front of the table, pen and pad out. "May I get you some drinks to start off with?" he asked, a mildly amused note in his voice.

"Uh, sure," Tye quickly said from across Gar, at the other end of the booth. "Sorry! I'll take…"

Ordering started going around the table, and Gar turned his attention to the view out the window and over the patio. To think a face-full of salt actually calmed him down. Gar laughed inwardly at himself, he had been so worked up over nothing. But he guessed it came with the package and all. He sighed. It was so nice outside, the afternoon sun shining lazily into the window, warming the booth nicely. Maybe he could talk everyone into going down to the bay afterwards. A couple seagulls were perched on the patio railing, swooping to the wooden floor every once and a while to pick at some unseen morsel. His forest-green eyes followed one of the birds fluttering around at the far end of the patio, choosing to finally land on the top of one of the opened umbrellas. It waltzed over to the very end of the blue-and-red striped pattern, leaning down to see if the party sitting below would care to share some crust or something. Gar followed the seagull's gaze, resisting the urge to yawn and thinking about what he wanted to drink…

If Gar had been an old man, he would have died twice that day.

Turned out a slim chance wasn't so slim after all.

Cyborg's back was moving animatedly with the wide motions he was making with his arms, Starfire laughing happily at whatever he was saying. Robin watched Starfire laugh with his own smile on his face, happy to be sitting next to her. Another guy, outfitted in orange and gold, was leaning across the table with his back to the window. He was attempting to converse with a face Gar knew all too well…

But Raven was staring directly at _him_.


	19. Part 3: So Much For Pizza

**Author's Note:** Hey there kiddoes!! Guess who is back from hiatus? That's right, for the rest of the summer I have some fun played for you all…muahahahaha! No really, actually I had bunches of fun writing this chapter and the next, and I bet I'll have even more fun writing the rest! Why was it so fun to write? You'll just have to read to find out! Yeah.

And now time to give a big bow-out to some of the characters here, cuz for more than a couple you won't be seeing them all that much for the rest of the fanfic. So pick your favs and say thankies for the show—and for you worrywarts out there, I'm solely talking about my original characters. All the Titans are sticking around til the end, you can bet on it. And whaddaya know, that reminds me: after rereading the story, I know I've made a lot of mistakes…like changing my villain's name halfway through the story, messing up Raven's incantation… and now I'm sincerely apologizing for last chapter's notorious 'Michelle'. For those of you who got confused, for some reason I felt like calling Nicole 'Michelle' that day and couldn't shake myself from it. And for those of you who didn't notice and now are confused, don't worry about it and just move on with your lives.

For those of you interested, the preview summary of my next TT fanfic is posted at the end of this chapter. Also: I'm thinking of starting a mini-project for the summer where you give me TT scenarios and I write one-chapter shots of them! More info on that next author's notes! Have fun now! ;P

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

Raven's expression matched that of Gar's as he stared back at her, mouth slightly agape. Both stunned, and taken completely by surprise, all either could do for the moment was stare unbelievingly at the other. Here? _Now?_ It was unrealistic, but it was happening.

Raven heard Kid Flash's voice in her ear, but did nothing to acknowledge it—she didn't even know if he had realized she had stopped listening to him entirely by now. If Raven could turn any paler than she already was, she was sure she was doing so. Un_real._ That was how she felt, as if she falling into a hole in the earth that had suddenly opened underneath her. She was looking at him…and he was looking at her.

And then just as suddenly as the contact had been made, they broke away from each other's eyes hastily—Gar looking wildly at the waiter as he tried to remember what he was supposed to be doing, and Raven turning towards Kid Flash with the shock still in her navy orbs and written all over her face. Luckily enough, he had been too involved in himself to notice anything was wrong…until he looked up at her when she moved so suddenly. Whatever he had been saying died from his mouth, and he gave her a quizzical look—she was breathing haltingly, as if she had just ran a marathon, her nostrils flaring.

"Uh…Raven? Are you okay?" he asked anxiously, leaning forward even further. She blinked at him, not really responding for a second as she belatedly registered that he asked her something.

"…Yes," she said, clearing her throat. She blinked a couple more times, knowing she probably was sounding as far from herself as she could. Her mouth and throat had gone dry, and she swore she wasn't seeing straight. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Kid Flash narrowed his eyes—her voice was way too bright-sounding for…well, for Raven. He reached out and touched her hands that were clenched tightly together on the table. "Are you sure? You look like you're about to hyperventilate."

For the first time since Kid Flash had meant Raven, she didn't reject him or his touch—instead she met his earnest stare with something he had learned to least expect from the dark, but nevertheless insightful, teenage girl: _confusion._

From back inside the restaurant, Gar found it hard to pay attention to what was happening around him as he found his gaze jerk back to Raven as soon as he had jerked away. And what he had seen—the new hero in orange leaning too far forward, cocky grin, and then concern, and then further forward, and _then_ reaching out to cup her hands in his—was causing Gar to feel something he had come to least expect from himself: _jealousy._

The longer Gar's forest green eyes focused on the interaction between the two outside on the patio, the more tense he became; his eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched as incoherent thoughts clamored around his head. _What_ did that kid think he was doing? If Gar had taken a moment to step back from himself and the situation, he might have realized Raven hadn't ever been one to be shocked easily, and so when it did happen of course her friends were concerned. He would have noticed Cyborg, Robin, and Starfire had ceased their conversation to inquiry about Raven's odd behavior as well. He would have noticed Cyborg shift and put his hand lightly on Raven's shoulder as well. He would have noticed Raven shakily trying to recover her wits as she looked at Robin, letting him know what was going on through a mere glance. But he didn't, and all he saw was that kid leaning forward, watching Raven with eager eyes.

And so of course he didn't notice the waiter talking to him, either.

Kassie, who was sitting next to Gar, elbowed him hard in the ribs and brought him back to his surroundings. With a grunt, Gar snapped out of his former trance-like state and looked around bewilderedly to find almost everyone at the table, including the waiter, watching him expectantly. "…uh, what…?" Gar hesitantly asked, knowing he had missed something somewhat important, or at least pertaining to him.

"I said, and what would you like to drink…?" the waiter answered dryly, a bit amused at Gar's total oblivion to the situation at hand. Gar heard some snickers from over in John and Michael's directions.

"Um, right, just water," Gar replied quickly, looking down at the table just as quickly. With some surprise, Gar realized his fists were clenched rather tightly in his lap, and proceeded to relax them. He also slumped back in his seat a little, since he had been sitting nearly stock-straight a second ago. Feeling his face redden ever so slightly, Gar refused to look back at the patio where the Titans had been—what the _hell_ had that been? He had reacted too fast to what he was seeing to actually think about why he was reacting; and Gar now sat feeling utterly confused. Why had he felt such…rage—he would not to admit it had been anything else—over seeing that guy with Raven? So strange, like he hadn't even been in control of his body or feelings at that moment…he saw Raven's hands cupped by the guy's hands once again in his mind's eye, and—

Gar suddenly stood up, catching the attention of Kassie and Benji who had been talking happily between themselves next to Gar. "I…have to pee," Gar blurted in response to their questioning eyes. Kassie snorted, but Gar barely heard—he just had to _get_ _out_, at least for a couple minutes, he felt as if the room was closing in on him…suffocating him. But of course, things weren't about to go as he planned.

"_Garfield!_ How _nice_ to see you!!"

At the sound of the bright, high-pitched, on-the-verge-of-squealing voice, the whole table groaned—excluding Michael, that is. Garfield's shoulders sagged, helplessly realizing he was going to have a _very_ hard time escaping as he felt Nicole slide up next to him. Yes, _felt_—he almost shivered as her hand came dangerously close to his behind and then proceeded to run up his spine until it came to rest on his shoulder. Nicole was not far behind, coming up and practically leaning on him as she gave him a wide, mischievous grin. She was clad in the usual, extremely low-cut tank and way-too-short skirt, sporting an overwhelming perfumed scent. Out of the corner of his eye, Gar saw Kassie roll her eyes with disgust.

Gar sighed. "Hey, Nicole," he said, moving away from her clinging grip to face her and the rest of the table. She watched him intensely, sending glances at the rest of the group only ever so slightly as if to let them know she knew they existed but didn't want to be bothered with them at the moment. "I was just—"

"Hope you haven't started having fun without me, guys," Nicole interrupted rather cheerfully, though only with eyes for Gar and seemingly oblivious to the effect she had had on the party.

"Oh, we wouldn't _dream_ of it," Kassie muttered as John, Tye and Nick snickered.

Gar took another step back as Nicole ignored Kassie and attempted yet again to latch herself onto Gar. "Listen, I'm just gonna head to—"

"Heya, Nicole!! What's up??" Michael leaned forward eagerly, trying to draw Nicole's attention—for his sake, mind you, not Gar's. "We're deciding on a pizza—"

"Oh, you haven't ordered yet?" Nicole said, turning more towards the table. Michael's face brightened instantly, and then abruptly fell again when Nicole turned back to Gar—who was still trying to inch away—and promptly continued, "I put my vote in with Gar's…"

At that moment the waiter decided to return with their drinks, cutting into Nicole's little chase—Gar had been backed up to the potted plant on the wall separating the booths. "Okay, which two of you had the Pepsis?" the waiter called out, somehow managing to balance the tray full of drinks.

"That'd be me and John!"

A call-out game then ensued—of which Nicole decided against allowing to distract her from what she had come for.

"The iced tea?"

"Hey Gar, isn't it just a _beautiful_ evening? I was wondering—"

"Ooh, that's me!"

"—if you would come out to the patio, I wanna take a picture—"

"Pibb Extra?"

"—so my online buddy can see the two of us, I've told her _all_ about you, being the new kid and all—"

"Over here!"

"Nicole, I have _really_ bad allergies—"

"Mountain Dew?

"Awww, but look, I have a digital camera and _everything!!_"

"That's mine!"

"Nicole, I really have to—"

"Oh, you _have_ to?! How sweet!"

Much to Gar's disdain, it appeared that Nicole had chosen to finally quit playing nice—grinning almost a little too harshly, she grabbed Gar's wrist and swung him around to follow her to the patio even before the waiter had finished handing the Mountain Dew to Benji. Of course, he immediately began struggling. No _way_ he was going out that door.

"Nicole I really don't want—"

They dodged a waitress heading in from the patio, Nicole's grip tightening as she jerked Gar towards the door, who was frantically twisting his wrist back and forth in an effort to break free.

"Come on, silly, your allergies can't be _that_ bad. I'm sure you'll last a few minutes," Nicole chirped forcefully, turning on the camera with her free hand. They were at the door…she reached out to push it open…

Gar stubbornly dug his heel into the carpet and pulled with the strength he had gained from being a crime-fighting superhero for the last couple of years; just because his powers had gone didn't mean his training and strength had left as well. His wrist was ripped from Nicole's hand…but not before she came along with it, completely taken by surprise with the force and strength Gar had used. She stumbled backwards into him, and all Gar could do was catch her by her shoulders so she wouldn't take them both to the floor. What resulted was very awkward, but very _close_ sort of embrace between the two—Nicole half-slumping into Gar as he held her up by her shoulders, blonde locks of hair falling into his face along with a powerful whiff of her perfumed scent.

The two stayed like that for a second, stunned, before Gar hastily pushed Nicole away—but not before he heard a couple snorts and chuckles from the table full of his friends, not before he felt his face flush with a mixture of embarrassment and horror. He instantly looked down at his feet, his mind reeling…he _really_ hoped…no one…had been looking in from the patio at that particular moment.

Unfortunately, Nicole recovered much faster than Gar did—she stood facing Gar for a second, blinked, giggled, and then promptly grabbed Gar again and pushed him out the door.

Out. The. _Door_.

Gar barely had time to think, let alone panic, before Nicole was dragging him towards the edge of the patio where the honks and whirrs of the evening traffic could be heard on the street below. A seagull cawed and flapped away as Nicole stomped across its former feeding ground. Within a few more seconds Nicole had whirled Gar around to stand beside her at the patio edge, leaning on the railing. "Don't worry, Garfield, we'll be done in two seconds," she said cheerfully. She began to hold the camera up. "Just say cheese for the camera!"

"_Nicole!_ Honestly, can't you tell when the poor guy has had enough?!"

Kassie's angry, sharp voice was more than enough to cause Nicole to flinch ever so slightly. She sighed, rolled her eyes and let the camera drop back to her side. Kassie strode across the patio, Benji standing half-way out of the door himself with an exasperated look on his face. Gar had a feeling he had unsuccessfully tried to persuade Kassie to let it alone. John and Michael had their faces plastered to the window at the booth—Nick and Tye at least had the decency to act like they were ignoring the situation by watching with disinterested expressions.

Gar _refused_ to look to his left.

"We're just taking a _picture_, Kassie," Nicole purred, although there was an obvious edge to her voice.

"Gar _clearly_ said he didn't _want_ to, you dolt." Kassie was fuming, and Gar helplessly realized this was going to last awhile. And of all the _places_ in the world… "When are you going to learn that there are _some_ boundaries you don't cross?!"

Nicole's eyes flashed. "I'm hardly crossing boundaries! I'm taking a freaking picture!"

"Um…ladies, maybe we could discuss this inside?" Gar futilely suggested, alarmed at the faces the two were making at each other. They ignored him.

"You have your man, _Kassie_. Step down off your pedestal and quit acting like you _own_ Garfield, or the rest of the guys, for that matter."

Oooh. Not good.

"That _does_ it!! Nobody even ever wants you around, _Nicole_. You think the groans that meet your arrival _every_ _single_ _time_ are groans of joy or something?? Michael's the _only_ guy around here that actually wants you, and you treat him like a _bug_!"

"Oh-ho, and what, now you're the _spokesman_ for all of them? Know what's _always_ on their minds, or something Kassie? Of course you do…I think your just jealous and out of place, losing your mind over the fact that you have to share the guys every once and a while."

"Jealous? _Jealous?_ How much of a fucking idiot are you?? You're the one who's always acting like the freaking _slut!!"_

Silence.

"Huh…okay, so then it be _perfectly_ in character for me to do something like THIS, now, wouldn't it?"

With that, Nicole swung around, grabbed the collar of Gar's shirt and slammed her mouth onto his, kissing him full-on. She wrapped one of her legs around the back of his, moving her arms to hook around the back of his neck and pressing her body up against his, cornering him against the rail. Completely taken aback, Gar gripped the rail as if for his dear life—and then felt Nicole's _tongue_ pushing into his _mouth_. Shit.

And all he had wanted was some pizza.

The sudden bright flash of a camera going off caused Gar to see spots, and then to flinch and shove Nicole off him amidst the faint catcalls, whistles and hoots of rowdy laughter coming from a certain booth inside the restaurant. Gar immediately straightened himself and stared with an expression of utter astonishment at Nicole, who calmly returned his gaze with a smug look upon her face as she snapped the camera's lens shut. Somehow she had managed to keep herself from falling even though Gar had given her a pretty hefty push. She gave a weird, guttural giggle. "_That_ one is going on my blog…"

_"For the love of—"_ Kassie more or less lunged at Nicole, whose face scrunched up in fear for about a millisecond until Benji calmly encircled a strong arm around Kassie's waist and pulled her back, though not without an accusatory glare from Kassie. Gar hadn't noticed whenever Benji had snuck up on the preoccupied three, but _thanked_ all that was holy he had decided to step in on the situation.

"Okay, girls, I'm _positive_ this little show has gone on long enough," Benji muttered loudly enough for the small group to hear, giving his own glares towards both Nicole and Kassie. Nicole recomposed herself and gave a small _Hmph_, and Gar swore he heard Kassie grinding her teeth. Benji pointedly glared at each of the girls. "You've…ahem, _interrupted_ enough meals already, which might _not_ have been _entirely_ _appreciated_ by _some_," Benji slightly jerked his head to the left. Both Nicole and Kassie stopped sending bad vibes at one another long enough to glance curiously at Benji. Nicole's eyes darted to the side, although she didn't move her head, and Gar saw a flustered look cross her face before she trained her eyes on a distant building, clearly wishing she hadn't looked. Kassie glanced around Benji, and Gar saw her eyes first widen in shock, and then her face flush and red splotches appear on her cheeks. Gar swore quietly under his breath, knowing what was coming.

Feeling as if he was marching towards doom itself, Gar turned slightly to meet the direct gazes of all five Titans.

* * *

The scenario could've been an ordinary, nothing-special-or-unusual sort of teen drama with nameless faces, and Raven could've rolled her eyes at the mess and moved on. But no, it had to be _anything_ but that, didn't it?

It hadn't taken long for the Titans' dinner to be interrupted and their attention to shift from each other to the little skirmish between the two girls—Kassie's biting voice was hard to ignore when broadcasted throughout the entire patio. What had not been expected by the majority of the team, however, had been the silhouette the girls were arguing across. Cyborg choked on his Mountain Dew, Robin furrowed his brow and glanced swiftly at Raven again, and Starfire gave a small gasp. Her green eyes lighting up, she almost jumped out of her seat. "Is that friend—?"

And that was the instant Nicole decided to slam one on Gar.

There was a stunned silence across the patio from both groups of teens, until Kid Flash—who had remained totally oblivious to the rest of the table's reactions and had just been watching curiously the whole time—thumped a hand against the sputtering Cyborg's shoulder and said animatedly, "_Damn_, I'd give _anything_ to be that sucker right about now!"

During the whole thing, Raven had stayed completely motionless, from the moment she had peered back into the restaurant to see Gar…supporting…the blonde girl by the door until now, as Gar pushed the girl off him with the flash of her camera going off. To the startlement of her friends, she more or less leaped up from the table, fighting a clamoring of emotions building up inside her—and for Raven that was quite literal. She felt a headache coming on as faint voices filled her head, and she hurriedly tried to push it all down as her face became heated. "Raven?" she heard Robin's voice quietly question in her ear. "Are you alright?"

Raven found she had somehow squeezed her eyes shut, and now opened them to face a worried-looking Robin. Thankfully, Kid Flash and the others were still watching the clashing troupe of teenagers to their right and didn't notice Raven cringing or Robin leaning over her with concern etched into his face. Raven opened her mouth to respond to the Titan leader, but stopped as her eyes caught sight of the two girls staring rather abashedly at the Titans. One then chose to look quickly away—the blonde—but the other continued to grow very red in the face. Robin turned to watch as well. The other girl—Raven now recognized her as the redhead from the mall that day—struggled to break free from the grip of the other boy who had joined them, and when she did, straightened and dusted herself off a tad. She cleared her throat.

"Ahem, erm…sorry?" When no one leapt at her throat, she blushed a bit more and added, _extremely_ fast, "Didntmeantointerruptyourmealwellbegoingnowsorry!!"

And with that, she hastily dragged the boy who had been holding her back inside the restaurant. The blonde stared after them for a second, then followed—although not without glancing quickly back once more towards the Titans, and then towards the only other one left standing one the patio, watching the Titans. Except he wasn't really watching the Teen Titans.

Raven's heart skipped a beat as Gar's gaze caught hers, and she felt a pressure building in her head and chest once more. Seeing him was nearing unmanageable; his face was like an open-book to her, always had been. Now, the completely mortified expression he was wearing should have said it all—but Raven still felt confused, and even more so when she saw the same confusion reflected in his forest-green eyes. There was also something else there, though Raven could not put her tongue on it…resurfacing hurt, memories…but also something directed directly at her and no one else…she sensed it, felt it almost pounding into her, echoing…longing?

With a start, Raven ripped her navy orbs away, squeezing her eyes shut again. "I…I have to go," she strangled out to the rest of the team before she enveloped herself in obsidian energy, taking her _anywhere_ away from there.

As the last of the black shadow whipped out of existence, the rest of the Titans traded glances, speechless. They stayed like that for a moment, undecided—then a semi-truck blared by on the road beneath the patio. When it had passed, Robin cleared his throat and took out a hookshot. "You guys wait for the pizza and pay," Robin said to the rest of the team over his shoulder as he ran for the edge of the patio. "I gotta go find her." Then he was gone.

Starfire, Cyborg, and Kid Flash remained silent for a little longer until Kid Flash searched the faces of the other two for some sort of explanation as to what had just happened. When the they didn't meet his questioning face, he rolled his eyes and leaned back with folded arms, keeping himself balanced by hooking a foot on the opposite side of the table. "Ooooookay," he snorted. "I'm just gonna be smart about that one and not even ask."

At the _swish_ and creak of the doors to the restaurant closing, though, Kid Flash swung around to look behind him with his lightening speed just in time to see the redhead kid duck inside, hurrying off the scene as if he had seen a ghost or something. Watching him go, Kid Flash couldn't help but wonder at the emotion-filled look he had seen Raven and the kid exchange moments before. _Just what in the hell…?_

* * *

Down far beneath even the sewer systems of Jump City, Melina Ragonu looked up from shuffling a stack of files as a small blinking green light on the side of some sort of monitor suddenly halted in the slow but mesmerizing track it had been following for the past two and half months or so. The monotone beep that had aroused her from her task in the first place continued, crescendoing in noise—Melina's face broke into a smile that grew with the sound until it stopped.

After a few seconds of complete silence throughout the lair, save for the quiet dripping from collected moisture falling to the ground in one corner or another, a faster, more intensely blinking blue light replaced the former green one. At the sight, Ragonu's eyes widened, not in surprise or astonishment—no, rather in excited anticipation. A low rumble started in the back of her throat to erupt forth and echo eerily across the empty walls in a harsh bark of laughter. Her pet henchman looked slowly up from its perch on a nearby table, inquiring. Ragonu once again laughed, and then raised her arms in a triumphant gesture.

"Soon, so soon," she said harshly to no one in particular but herself, "it will begin. And then…"

Ragonu crossed her arms and glared at the monitor with streaming figures and windows she had been working on before. "And then, _I_ will emerge victorious with what I have planned. The _only_ victor."

From its perch, IDR56 made a strange chittering, seemingly to match Ragonu's earlier laughter. She gazed over to where it crouched. "Yes, yes, my little one," she crooned almost motherly, but still with an underlying, overwhelmingly murderous tone to her voice. "Your time to play is once again nearing. And _oh_, how much _fun_ both of us will have with our prey, won't we?"

She began laughing again, accompanied by the inhuman chittering of her pet. She than began humming a strange, haunting tune that carried across the walls of her lair, shoving the files away as she sat down once again at the monitor. "Mmmm…oh yes, _my_ little lost boy, so much fun…mmmm…"

* * *

**So there you go. Nicole's fabulous farewell, as you won't be seeing her again, if I'm correct…but you never know. Anyways, onto the preview summary! If you read this and like the sound of it, let me know in a review so I can start working on it!! For starters, this will take place a few years into the future, after the whole TT series and the Tokyo OVA or whatever you call it; and, as you will see, a future where the animated series and the actual comic cross, in my mind. And now, drum-roll please:**

With the eve of Beast Boy's eighteenth birthday nearing, things have definitely changed around the Titan Tower; Robin and Starfire are still going strong, Cyborg had gotten an invitation to join the Justice League, and the original five-member team has made some new additions to the team. Crime is at an all-time low on the west coast, thanks to the growing membership of both the Teen Titans and Titans East. Nationally, the branch of teen superheroes has gained incredible recognition, and continues to battle crime successfully everyday. Yeah, things seem to be going great for the Titans.

That doesn't necessarily quell the doubts and fears Beast Boy seems to be having about the changes happening around him.

Seeing Robin take on an apprentice, seeing Cyborg seriously considering membership to the League, seeing new, younger and extremely enthusiastic mew members taking up residence in the Tower—it isn't hard for Beast Boy to wonder at how he and his friends are changing, have changed…it isn't hard for Beast Boy to have sickeningly nostalgic wish for the return of good old days.

But while Beast Boy feels as if the Titans he knew are slipping from his grasp, the rest of the world doesn't have time to stop and reminisce with him. Soon, the Titans discover what seems to be a deeply involved and thickening drug circle conspiracy of sorts that leads them from the familiar traffic noises of downtown Jump City to the foreign jungles and death-traps of Africa's terrain—well, maybe foreign to all but Beast Boy…

Faced with what appears to be the last mission of the original five, and the dark troubles and secrets of his haunting childhood in Africa, will Beast Boy discover more about his friends and himself on an entangling journey of emotion and crime?

Hop aboard to find out!

* * *

**Sorry, I couldn't help but add that last part in! Heh…so anyways, tell me watchya think, okay? Til next time, then!!**


	20. Part 3: There's Always That Something

**OMG!! MINI-PROJECT!! Summer '07-**

This'll go under Teen Titans, people.

So here's the deal: I saw this done under the Naruto category and thought, 'that's a totally awesome idea! I should try it!' So I'm warning you now, this is not original, but in my opinion with your cooperation it'll be downright COOL.

That's right, I need your participation as a reader!! WOW! Wanna help me practice my writing skills and see an idea of yours from the another perspective? Cuz here's where that'll happen! I'm going to start a fanfic where you guys, the readers, give me the scenarios and I write one-chapter shots of them! Here's how to participate:

1. Send me a PM or a review where you give me a scenario involving two Titans characters. Doesn't matter who they are (I will involve other characters, but the one-hot will be focusing on your chosen ones), and the scenario can be funny, romantic, dark, brooding, or whatever! Be as specific as you'd like, but don't write it out yourself and send it to me cuz that defeats the purpose of the project!! Am I right folks?

2. DO NOT EMAIL ME. Most likely I will think it's spam and delete it cuz I don't trust the big bad cyberworld.

3. This'll go on for the whole summer, or until I get bored doing it (I like this sort of stuff, though, so YEAH).

4. Please refrain from giving me something extremely stupid or extremely disgusting to write about. I will not write about it.

5. And yeah, that does remind me: I'm going to be choosing which scenarios I write, so don't be mad and hunt me down if yours doesn't happen. Of course, that won't be a problem if nobody sends me anything!

PLEASE COOPERATE, PEOPLE, AND SEND ME STUFF!! I WANNA HAVE FUN! Thank you and have a nice day.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Nothing much to say, since I've already taken up a bunch of space. I've been planning this chapter for a while, seeing as it's a major pinnacle in the story, and it didn't come out exactly how I had planned it for so long—but I'm still pretty satisfied with the results. Next chapter will be up soon enough, I hope. Other than that…

Puh-LEASE help me with my mini-project, I really wanna try it!!

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

Gar's vision swam as he shouldered his way through the gathering evening crowds on the sidewalks of downtown Jump City. Paying no attention to exactly where he was heading, he earned more than a few angry looks and sharp outbursts when he happened to accidentally collide outright with someone. It all fell on deaf ears, however, as Gar was far away, trying to sort through the mixed emotions running through his head.

As soon as Raven had disappeared in a cloak of black energy, Gar had been crushed—he hadn't known what he expected when he and Raven locked gazes, but apparently he had not wanted _that_ to happen. It hadn't taken him long to leave the restaurant afterwards, feeling lightheaded and somewhat…betrayed. Nicole had left immediately after returning inside, as Gar was informed by Kassie when he walked in the door; he hadn't responded to anything the group said to him, however, and merely had grimaced out a tight smile before telling his friends—rather distractedly, a few had noted—that he wasn't feeling to great and felt he should take his leave as well. Gar had turned his back and fled without acknowledging the heartfelt groans of disappointment, the goodbyes, or the cries of, "Dude, _darn_ allergies, right? Haha!"

And so now he meandered through the city in the general direction of his apartment, hands shoved deep into his pockets and brow furrowed as he brooded.

Raven's eyes kept coming back to his mind's eye, right when she realized he had still been watching her as the others hurried away—and each time he shook his head in frustration in an attempt to rid himself of the image, especially the image of the same eyes wrenching away from his, as if burned or scolded. Why…? He had seen it there, in her eyes, deep within the navy, endless midnight-blue, screaming out at him if only for an instant—and he knew she had seen the same in his eyes, which had scared her. It had scared him, and at the same time had begun a wave of hope underneath everything else, seeing that identical…yearning. That desire to speak to one another again, to just be with one another again…

He missed her, and she missed him. More than missed, perhaps.

Gar's mind suddenly reeled, and he found he was breathing very shallowly, taking quick gasps. Coming to a stop, he realized there weren't any buildings to the left of him—he had followed the sidewalk to the downtown park. Staring at the greenery, almost out of place in the hustle-bustle of the city (probably the reason why it was built, eh?) a vacant bench a little further into the park beneath a large maple suddenly looked very inviting. Tromping through the grass and avoiding a stray frisbee, Gar plopped down on the bench when he reached it and heaved a sigh, bringing his hands up to cup his face. Midway, however, he stopped his actions again and stared down almost breathlessly.

His hands were violently shaking, trembling, refusing to stay steady.

* * *

As Raven had emerged from her teleportation energy, she heard more than a few gasps and felt a cool breeze play across her cheek, the buzz of city traffic sounding a bit muffled. _The park,_ she thought mildly, _of course._ Where else to calm a body's soul but among barking dogs, reckless joggers, and shrieking play?

Miffed as she might have been, there weren't really that many people around and it hadn't taken her long to take up a meditation pose under the shade of some tree or another and begin muttering in streamline her telltale incantation _"Azarath, Mentrion, Zinthos…"_

Raven didn't think it had ever been as hard to mediate as then, save for a few other times in her life; every time she tried to find her center, to push away thought, he loomed at the edge of her mind only to further incite the clamor of emotions she was attempting to soothe. She was confused beyond belief, wanting to blush at the reaction she had given to the situation, and then wanting to break down and cry, and then wanting to cower in a corner and escape from the world. Never…even her anger was leaking into her thoughts, as she found herself vehemently thinking about that kiss, and then reprimanding herself for being so weak as to let this affect her, and then blaming the whole thing on him…

_Stop!_

Her scream echoed inside of her mind, as she continued to utter the words taught to her so long ago for control. Seizing the opportunity of silence, she grabbed at that peaceful center she so often sought out, grabbing at the soft blanket that would cause her trouble to cease…

And was extremely shocked to find an all-too-familiar voice whispering something somewhere in her mind—not her own voice, but a warm, kind voice she had grown so used to over the past few years, annoying her yet comforting her with its consistency. A voice that had vanished from her life only a while ago, although it seemed like ages ago. She found herself listening, trying to make out the words…

And then it was gone and she was falling into her center, into a blanket of white.

Raven started and snapped her eyes open to the park scene in front of her, the sounds of children playing and adults chatting and dogs barking and a breeze rustling the leaves and blades of grass even more acute to her ears. _What the…?_ But while her mind was cleared now, she quickly shut her eyes as she felt chaos still creeping at the edge of her mind, waiting for the opportune moment to pounce. Pushing away questions for now, Raven began her incantation again.

After what seemed like hours, Raven felt the outer world deemed worthy enough to enter her senses' acknowledgement again, the turmoil inside her now in check. Taking a shuttering breath and then slowly releasing it, Raven dared to crack open an eye, peering out into the golden sunlight of the evening.

Robin was leaning on the tree opposite her.

Although startled, Raven didn't show any emotion on her face and instead gracefully dropped down from her levitating pose, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow at him. "So how long have you been standing there…?" she droned.

He considered her for a moment, and then smirked. "Long enough to laugh at every single person who tripped over their feet trying to get a better look at you while you were in no-man's land."

Raven allowed a slight smile to snake across her lips.

They regarded one another silently, listening to the trees ruffling in the breeze. Then Robin pushed himself off his tree and came to join Raven underneath hers. Settling once again with his back against the trunk, Raven waited for him to speak with bated breath, knowing what was coming.

"So," he started casually. "Care to share what happened back there?"

Raven's nostrils flared defiantly for a second. "Not particularly," Raven said stiffly, not turning to face Robin. Before he could say anything, she continued, "But I know I'm going to have to in order to have a decently peaceful night at the Tower."

Robin watched her and chuckled. "Yeah, you're right there." He frowned, though, and said in a more serious tone, "You _do_ know that I just don't like to be left in the dark when it comes to my friends, right?"

Raven glanced at him through the corner of her eye, and moved back to lean beside him on the tree. She sighed through her nose. "I know."

"So, spill."

"…I've just been really…confused lately."

Both stared straight ahead.

"You're not alone in how you feel about this, Raven. I'll be exercising in the gym and notice Starfire gazing sadly at the treadmill. I'll be in the garage getting some tools and notice Cyborg glancing over his shoulder, waiting for his work on the T-car to be loudly disrupted. I'll be sitting in the kitchen, expecting a weirdly disgusting tofu creation to be dumped in front of me any minute. Over two months, and I still catch all of us having moments where his absence is undeniable and complete. Painful moments."

Raven remained silent.

"That's why I pray things like today never happen, why I never go down one specific corridor in the Tower, why I sometimes refuse to acknowledge his…" Robin trailed off, and Raven looked towards him curiously to find his face turned away. "It's all…to lessen the pain. Or an attempt anyways. On my part, a stupid and pretty dumb attempt I've been making—there's always that one thing, no matter where or when or how, that always reminds us."

Raven's expression softened, and she looked up into the canopy of the tree, patterns of light dancing across her face through the swirling leaves. "I know what you mean," she said quietly. "It's taken me a long time to accept it, but…" Raven stopped, choking a tad on her words. Alarmed, she took a deep breath to get herself under control again, eyes watering dangerously. She closed her eyes. "…I miss him."

Robin turned back towards her, studying her upturned face.

"His ridiculous ideas, his annoying jokes, his…I miss him, and feels like a part of me has died—a part of the team has died. I _miss_ him. And seeing him today, like…for some part of me, it was just too much to handle at that moment. And I had to get away, to calm myself down."

Robin nodded slowly. He crossed his arms and looked down. "Sometimes…I wonder if I did the right thing. Pushing him away like that, making him leave. Was it good for the team, for him, or was I just afraid of dealing with the problem? Just making up excuses instead of lending support and direction like a leader should? His reaction, ours individually and as a team…I really don't know anymore, and I'm scared—no, _terrified_—to think too much about it."

He heard Raven shift next to him, and felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he met her eyes to see something he rarely saw: her navy eyes were brimming with raw emotion, gazing at him tenderly. "We'll…get through this, Robin."

He nodded, unable to speak. And then suddenly, in unspoken mutual agreement, the two Titans embraced, lending comfort to each other.

* * *

Gar surveyed the park grounds, forcing himself to take deeper breaths and ignore the thoughts and feelings swirling around in his head. He gripped the edge of the bench tightly, the whites of his knuckles showing. His throat was extremely dry, and the inside of his mouth felt like sandpaper every time he swallowed. _Wonder if there's a drinking fountain_, he thought absently, still scanning the area. And then his eyes abruptly stopped, resting on a tree a little ways off, across some jogging paths. Underneath the tree, there was a sight that nearly made him choke on nothing and caused his eyes to widen considerably.

Raven and Robin? _Here?_

* * *

The two comrades and friends remained as they were for a minute or two, and then broke apart. Robin held onto Raven's shoulders a moment longer and gave her a gentle squeeze before letting his arms drop. They gave each other small smiles, ready to face the world again.

"Listen, Raven," Robin began. He hesitated, and Raven patiently waited for him to continue. "There's something I want to—"

A buzzing sound from Robin's belt interrupted him and drew the attention of the two Titans. Robin had his communicator out in a flash, flipping it open with expertise. Cyborg's face appeared on the small, circular screen.

"Hey man, did you find her?"

Raven immediately circled around Robin so she could be seen by her friend. "Right here, Cyborg."

"You okay then?" She nodded, he grinned. "Good. Listen, both of you should get back to the Tower right away."

Robin perked up at the edge of anxiousness that leaked through Cyborg's voice. "Why? What happened?"

"Nothing serious, but someone tried to hack into the Towers' system."

"WHAT?"

"Calm down, Robin. He said it was nothing serious."

"Yeah, they _tried_. But of course, they didn't get in. Still, there are some interesting tracks the hacker left behind that I'd like you two to take a look at. And the most interesting thing is what the hacker tried to get at."

Robin cocked his head, questioning.

"Personal files. The security system, data concerning the actual Tower—it appears to be untouched. But our personal files containing programs we use as Titans, they were fiddled around with."

"…"

"Yeah, I know. But the most important, or I guess I should say the most serious thing they messed with was our profile files. Villain analysis stuff as well as…stuff about us. _All_ of us."

Robin stiffened a bit, wondering if Cyborg meant what he though he meant when he emphasized 'all'. Raven looked from Cyborg to Robin.

"Right, we'll be there soon as we can." Cyborg nodded on his end, and Robin flipped the communicator closed.

Securing the device once again to his belt, he turned towards Raven. She noticed by his pose and demeanor he was back to his commando-self. "Let's get going."

Raven watched his back as he strode away, and before following him looked around the park once more. It seemed like most people were retiring now, as the park was becoming emptier with each passing moment and anyone still there was headed towards the edge. Raven had the nagging feeling that you get when you feel like you're forgetting something, searching for something you don't even know that you're searching for. It was…odd. All the fields of grass were deserted, the sun was getting lower and lower, and no one remained resting on the benches. There was nothing there. Shrugging mentally, Raven hurried after Robin trying to put the feeling from her mind.

A piece of trash blew by the bench that had been occupied by Gar Logan only a little while ago.

* * *

Gar slammed into the apartment, breathing hard and feeling dizzy. None of the lights were on and the apartment was dim in the shadows of the setting sun—Steve had obviously gone out, and for that Gar was half-way relieved. He didn't want to see anyone right now, let alone explain to Steve why he looked like he had gone through the fires of hell.

Exhaustion rippled through Gar's entire body as he made his way to his room, not bothering to flip on any lights. He had pretty much sprinted blindly from the park, upset and with the only goal in mind to get home. The afternoon had gone horribly wrong, and Gar was doing everything he could to ignore it, not think about, to forget it. Right now he felt that was all he could do.

Once Gar made it to his room, he collapsed on his bed. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, his pulse roaring in his ears. Trying to slow his breathing, Gar stretched his arms above his head—and noticed they were shaking as his hands had been in the park. In fact, his whole body was trembling, as if under too much strain. A tingling sensation erupted at his feet, and Gar immediately sat up. He was hot all over. _Maybe I should take some pills or something,_ he thought tiredly as he unsteadily rose. _Something to knock me out for a while._

In the bathroom, Gar turned on the sink, leaning over it as he allowed himself to be comforted by the rushing water coming out of the spicket. Gar reached out to open the cabinet above but stopped at his reflection—he hadn't been exaggerating earlier about the going through hell, apparently. His entire face and neck were flushed, his lips cracked and dry like he hadn't had water in days. His pupils were dilated and his eyelids involuntarily flickering wildly. Gulping, Gar went on and opened the cabinet and found the _Tylenol PM_, without much difficulty. Shutting the cabinet again, Gar started to shakily unscrew the top when all of a sudden the ground rushed up at him.

Shocked, Gar snapped his eyes closed tightly and fought back bile that was rising in the back of his throat. _What the hell?_ Gar slowly opened an eye, his vision swarming with spots, and he attempted to empty the pills into his hand. He halted as the ground jumped again, and he felt a falling sensation in the pit of his stomach. He was surprised to hear himself give a high-pitched groan, and felt as if he was disconnected from his body. The bathroom lights suddenly seemed way too bright, and the ground lurched again…

The bottle of medicine clattered to the floor, pills spilling out and rolling until coming to a rest beside Gar's motionless body.

* * *

_Something wasn't right._

Raven stopped in mid-step, this fact suddenly booming forth from some corner of her mind. It was one plus of having powers like Raven's; over the past sixteen years of her life, she had developed a sixth sense only strengthened with the help of her psychic abilities. And right now, that sixth sense was telling her _something wasn't right._

"Raven?'

Up ahead, Robin seemed to have noticed that his teammate had stopped further behind, and was now waiting for her to catch up. The two were heading through the Tower to Cyborg's little security room—Raven really didn't know what he liked to call it, but it was the main computer room of the Tower, more private than the living area that the team used for briefings. It hadn't taken them long to make it back to the Tower, but they had come back together, merely walking through the city until they reached the bay, where Raven warped them across with her powers.

Raven didn't answer Robin for a minute, acting like she hadn't heard him. He was about to call her again when she suddenly focused on his face, an intent look in her eyes. "Robin, I have to check on something," she droned, but with an urgent edge to her voice. Robin raised an eyebrow. "You go on and check out whatever Cyborg wanted to show us, I won't be too long."

And with that she whipped around, cape flying behind her as she jogged back in the direction they had come.

Robin frowned. Something must be wrong. Raven never _jogged_.

It took no time at all for Raven to reach Gar's apartment, teleporting as soon as she was out of Robin's sight. She stood in his living room, wondering why she had decided to teleport directly into the apartment—rather rude, if she was wrong and everything was fine. She hoped she wouldn't have to explain herself; and it didn't even seem like anyone was home, with all the lights turned off.

Then she heard it—a faint rushing through the walls, the rush of water speeding through pipes. Turning, Raven faced a small hallway that lead further into the apartment behind the kitchen—there was a soft glow coming from the very end of the hall, spilling out from a room. Gar's room. Raven lingered for a moment longer, then followed the hallway.

The closer she got, the louder the rushing sound of the pipes got, along with the sound of water coming out of a sink. Other than that, the apartment was deathly still, giving an eerie feel to the situation. Dread began rising in Raven, and she unconsciously held her breath. The bedroom doorway seemed ominous, and it took all the courage Raven could muster to peer around the corner—and she breathed a small sigh of relief. No one was there. Then the dread returned. No one was _there_. Raven's eyes widened, and she stepped into the room eyeing the light coming from the bathroom.

For one of the first times in Raven's life, she found herself sincerely praying to whatever controlled the universe—praying that she would _not_ find something when she peered into the bathroom.

Raven gasped when she did.

* * *

Kassie grumbled under her breath as she climbed the stairs of Gar's apartment building, holding his wallet in one hand. Trust the kid to leave something this important behind, right? And she _had_ to be the one to return it, no one _else_ could spare time from their _busy_ schedules of doing _nothing_.

"'_But_ _you're the only one who knows where Gar lives, Kassie_'," she imitated one of the boys in a high voice. She snorted. "Michael knows where he is, and so does John and Nick, they freaking had to pick him up more than once. Freaking losers."

She didn't speak for a minute, and then heaved a sight. Actually, she knew why she was the one returning the wallet—she knew why she had to. She needed to check on Gar, and talk to him about what had happened at the parlor; she was, after all, the girl of the group and so most of the situations like this fell on her. And this time, it was partly her fault—Kassie blushed furiously and wanted to smack herself on the side of the head for the big deal she had made over Nicole's usual antics. If she had just let it go, Gar would've probably come back inside after the stupid picture and they could've eaten pizza in peace and joked around like they normally did. The conversation had been awkward and quiet after Gar left, until Michael told Kassie she had to go return Gar's forgotten wallet later. Acknowledging the fact that what had happened had actually happened seemed to do the trick, and the group made fun of Nicole as usual and then the talk flowed freely again with the comfort that Kassie would fix everything later that night.

_Bloody little shits_, she thought grumpily as she came to a stop outside Gar's door. She was mostly furious with herself, but she could blame the others for being too cowardly to actually talk to their friend and hold that over their heads for later. Anyways.

Kassie knocked on the door a couple times and rang the doorbell. She waited, and nothing happened. _Hope he's not in the shower or something,_ she thought. She knocked a little louder, then banged with her fist a couple times. "Hey Gar, you there? Anyone? I got your wallet, you forgot it at the pizza parlor," she more or less shouted into the door. She hoped the buildings' walls were thick, or else the neighbors would be coming out to yell at her to shut up in a minute. "Gar? GAR! Mr. Dayton?"

Still nothing. Kassie looked down at her feet, debating whether to wait outside the door or not. She was about to pull out her cell phone when suddenly the door swung open. "Oh good, there you are," Kassie started before looking up to see who had opened the door. "Look, we need to talk—"

Catching sight at exactly who was at the door, Kassie froze.

_Raven?_ The Teen Titan? _Here?_ Now?

The superhero watched the completely stunned Kassie work her mouth for a second before deciding to speak herself.

"I think we need an ambulance."


	21. Part 3: Criminals Rising

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

Tzeck Shonia had considered himself a fairly normal man. Living with his small but loving family of three in Georgia, he did what he was told—he paid his taxes, did his job, and listened to the government. Not once in his life had he broken the law, neither Georgian laws or the more oppressive Russian laws; he had never involved himself in the educational revolutions of the smaller country-states, had never complained of the unfair conditions that had reigned for the better part of a decade in his small, isolated, mostly-shut-off-from-the-world nation. The fact that he worked for the Russian government in depth, and they could pull his funding and income and life out from under his feet at any moment probably had something to do with his docile obedience, but never once did he really question it. As long as he did his job as one of Russia's top research genealogists, Tzeck Shonia thought his slightly deadpan but nonetheless typical and contented existence would continue without harsh interruption. 

Now, fearfully shuffling behind one of the most notorious and infamous criminals of the time, Tzeck Shonia wondered where his reasoning had gone wrong.

His family held captive and ready to be murdered with a word, all of them kidnapped from their comfortable life, Tzeck Shonia followed Slade's every wish with the hope of being returned to that life unharmed. Neither the Russian government nor the Georgian government would miss him, seeing as they would most likely mark him down as one of the many fleeing emigrants making their way to America or Great Britain. He had no family besides the one being held by Slade's henchmen to worry over his absence, no close friends or coworkers, either. Instead, he was stuck in a nightmarish, underground labyrinth of criminals and villains and darkness, all under the rule of Slade.

There were other scientists, doctors—five all together—that all appeared to be in the same position; all were foreign and terrified out of their minds. By communicating in broken, sometimes barely decipherable English, Tzeck had been able to discover their situations were extremely similar to his: kidnapped, loved ones threatened, life disrupted. But by far, the most disturbing fact of their situation was what they were being required to do; it was in a universal language every single one of them could understand fluently, and on understanding were far from eager to complete the task at hand. Tzeck had to admire the brilliant equations and schematics at hand—never before had he, or any of the other scientists, seen anything quite like it…genius work, groundbreaking work—it wasn't hard for someone as practiced as him to see how amazing the mind behind it had to be. But the manipulations, the enhancements—as he double-checked them and administered the required radiation and injections, Tzeck knew he was aiding in the creation of something monstrous. The looks on the other scientists' faces as they did their jobs showed their horrified repulsion as well. They were all aware of what Slade was planning…

And were _so_ afraid.

* * *

The man whose vicious alter-ego was known as Plasmas slept soundly inside his steel preservation chamber, never knowing he had been precariously removed from the California State Convict Institution and placed in a reinforced, guarded room underneath two miles of dirt and rock and clay. For the past two weeks or so, the super-villain had been kept in suspended animation—and now, for the first time in two weeks, the normally sealed and locked door to the room he was kept in cracked and hissed open. 

Slade would soon have use for the monster.

Letting his eye adjust to the darkness and shadows of the room, Slade resisted the urge to slit the throat of the trembling scientist behind him; it hadn't taken much to blackmail the poor man into helping him, but he was increasingly becoming a pain in the ass as he began to piece together what exactly Slade was doing. The jailbreak of several super-villains, the recruiting of those same villains, the injections they were being given—it wasn't hard to realize what was going on if you were a top Russian genealogist who understood the changes in the villains' medical charts, the results of the chemicals and such that each subject was being given regular dosages. And Slade could tell it was scaring the shit out of him…but the death of his captive family scared more shit out of him. Slade loved how easily human emotions could be manipulated.

"You know what to do." Slade's Russian was flawless, and Tzeck scurried forward, nodding. As if expecting the sleeping man to jump out at his throat, Tzeck worked quickly and efficiently, refusing to even glance through the glass at the frozen face inside. Slade watched with a disinterested air as the small man checked the vital signs of Plasmas, scribbled some notes on a clipboard, checked the charts, and proceeded to enter a vial of glowing, green gaseous substance into the preservation chamber, so it could saturate the skin of the villain and begin its DNA-enhancing job. The process had been done repeatedly on several super-villains recruited by Slade over the past couple of weeks, with no implications. Slade felt his face stretch into a grin under his mask as the scientist made his way back towards the door.

Who knew Ragonu could've been such a useful tool?

"Sir."

Slade turned to face the monotone, mechanical voice of one of his robotic henchmen. He was handed a metal box before the henchman once again disappeared into the shadows. Knowing what it was, Slade's grin only widened. "Useful, indeed," he muttered under his breath, stroking the box. In here was the last piece Slade needed to let his plan fall into place. Just this…and then he would wait.

Slade wondered briefly if it was by some sick twist of good fortune he had come by the mad but brilliant woman, ready to do so much solely for the guarantee of that green brat being delivered safely into her hands. Ragonu had truly been his major trump card this time around, unrivaled in both her skills as a geneticist and computer hacker—and Slade had been able to play her more than he could've imagined, with her insane fetishes blinding her the whole time. Yes, this time the Titans wouldn't even know what hit them. This time…

"This time, the Titans _will_ fall," Slade spat. Tzeck looked up at the man as the room's door clanked shut behind him, not understanding Slade's words but catching the sinister, raging tone. He shivered slightly.

"They will _fall_…"


	22. Part 3: Hospital Mania!

**EDIT: 7/31/07- Hey, lookie, it's the whole chapter now!! YAY! That is all.**

**Author's Note:** This isn't the whole chapter. Just thought I'd get that out there. See, I'm heading off to camp for a week and didn't want to leave my devoted fans (haha I know I'm delusional XD) without anything to read for another week. So you get an unfinished chapter—originally it was going to have one or two more sections, but I'll go on and post it cuz the chapter before this is short and kinda BLAH. Sorry, I had major writer's block starting this chapter, and took me until about two days ago to hop on outta that. So there's my excuse for taking so long. I'll put the rest of this chapter with the next one when I get back, and later replace this chapter with…well, with the whole one. Sorry again, and I'll try to make the reading as not-confusing as possible. Over and OUT!

P.S.- Kudos to **The Flying Frog**, **madmartagan**, and **Silver-Night2** for being the first three to respond to my MINI-PROJECT!! I'm gonna start working on that soon…

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

White. 

_Blazing_ white.

That was the first thing Gar's mind registered as he blinked himself awake, still battling snaking tendrils of grogginess which refused to let go without a fight. The harsh white against his eyes cause him to blink owlishly, and after a couple seconds of adjusting, Gar was able to make out the fluorescent light flickering slightly on the white ceiling. Slowly, Gar's other senses began kicking in as well; he felt a bed beneath him, crisp sheets covering him lightly. He heard air rushing out of a vent somewhere overhead. The air was fresh and clean, carrying a faint vanilla scent that tickled his nostrils pleasantly. There was a slight pressure on the left side of the bed, causing it to sink ever so slightly. A quiet whirring sound reached his ears from somewhere to his right, along with an echoing, methodical beeping. Curious, Gar lazily shifted in his bed a tad, turning his head to see what was going on. The rustling and small crunch of plastic met this effort.

Now even more curious, Gar managed to look down so his sight was filled by the clear, plastic mask fitted over his nose and mouth. _A mask?_ Gar followed the two rubber tubes elongating from the mask, tracing their winding path across his bed to the blinking, whirring monitor unit setting right beside his bed. _Kinda like snakes,_ he though fuzzily, staring at the tubes…at the monitor. Staring at the heart monitor. A mask…

_An oxygen mask._

Gar started into complete consciousness, adrenaline coursing through his body as dread welled up in his stomach. The methodical beeping grew louder and a bit faster. Gar immediately shot up, swallowing some threatening bile as he felt like he kept flying forward, even though his body remained sitting up in the hospital bed. He shook his head to get rid of the feeling, and instead it got replaced with a sharp pain in the back of his head. Reaching up to tenderly touch his bandaged head, Gar felt the starched cloth of the hospital gown scratch against his skin. Gar began shaking. There was a little tug on his wrist as he lifted it—some tape secured the I.V. needle into his wrist.

Gar squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to shove away the fear, but it didn't work. Gasping, Gar ripped the oxygen mask off his face and cast his eyes wildly around the room, knowing he was about to start hyperventilating. _Steve!_ He silently cried, but his foster father was no where to be found in the cramped hospital room. The beeping grew faster, Gar's breath was coming in ragged gasps…

Suddenly something shifted to Gar's left, tickling his arm and causing him to jerk around to face…Gar's heaving chest slowed, and his crushing death-grip on the oxygen mask relaxed, if only a little.

"…Raven?" he croaked, his voice barely there.

The goth girl was raising herself to gaze at Gar through half-open, sleep-ridden eyes—she had fallen asleep half-on the bed, her chair scooted close so she could lay her head down next to Gar, her hands…Gar flushed slightly, momentarily forgetting his situation…her hands resting on his wrist.

While Gar took this in, Raven was awake in an instant. "You're awake!" she gasped, sitting up straight in her chair—but not before grasping at Gar's hand with her own, entwining their fingers for a quick second. Just as quickly, she let go. They stared at each other for a moment.

She cleared her throat, slipping back into her regular monotone demeanor and sliding back further into her chair. "You really shouldn't be sitting up," she droned matter-of-factly. "The nurses said you'd need at least a couple days' worth of rest. It's hardly been a day yet."

Gar stared at her dumbly, not quite sure what to say, not quite sure what was going on, and not quite sure his voice would work even if he knew what to say. At his silence, Raven dropped her stand-offish poise a bit and leaned forward. About to say something, she paused. Then, "…Garfield?"

Somewhere in the back of Gar's mind he bitterly noted how she had struggled to say his name.

At that moment, a nurse in yellow scrubs decided to waltz through the door—and Gar was instantaneously reminded exactly what kind of position he was in. He worked his mouth like a fish out of water, and felt the fear rising again.

Raven realized something was wrong once more as Gar froze at the sight of the nurse. Erratic beeping started coming from the monitor, a lot faster than the paced beep Raven had grown accustomed to, lulled to sleep the past night by its methodical sound. "Garfield?" she tried again. The nurse looked up from shutting the door at the sound of her voice, and noticed Gar was sitting up, in bed…clutching his oxygen mask…paler than a ghost…breathing heavily…eyes extremely wide in terror…

The nurse wasted no time in throwing open the door again and yelling something down the hall—Gar couldn't tell what she had said, barely even heard Raven calling his name again. He was losing control of his lungs, and wanted to curl up in a ball far, _far_ away from here…

Two more nurses rushed in, and all three quickly made their way towards Gar's bed. What caught Gar's panicked attention was the syringe one of the new nurses was holding, pushing to make sure the medicine inside squirted out of the thin, gleaming needle…if possible, Gar found himself panicking even more, backing up in the bed. Even though he told himself repeatedly it was going into the I.V., his body refused to obey and sit still, and he found himself begin to thrash about, scrambling to get away as the nurses reached out to get him under control, murmuring comforting coos…

And suddenly Gar halted, feeling a cool, calming wave of…_something_…wash over him. His breathing came under control again, his head stopped throbbing, and he more or less felt the color flood back into his face. He felt completely serene, his grip on the mask slipped and his limbs fell limp, relaxed and comfortable. As if his fear was melting away…

"I don't believe that will be required."

Raven's firm voice brought Gar back, and he realized she was standing against him, supporting him from falling off the bed as she held his hand with one of hers and his shoulder with her other hand. The nurse with the syringe quickly backed away from the I.V., the syringe unused. She smiled and nodded, before the one in yellow ushered the additional nurses out of the room, all three talking quietly. Before shutting the door, the nurse in yellow turned around and said softly, "I'll let you settle him down while I go get the doctor." She focused on the bewildered Gar. "And I'm quite sure there's someone who would _love_ to know you're awake down in the cafeteria—he'll be here shortly."

And with that, Raven and Gar were alone in the room.

Both remained blissfully unaware of the exact position they were in for a little longer before _Raven_ became painfully aware of what exact position they were in—Gar was leaning rather heavily into Raven, whose arms were almost cradling Gar in a somewhat protective fashion. It didn't help that Gar's head was pretty much level, and thankfully not quite pressed into, Raven's…bosom-oriented area. Raven's face heated and she knew she was blushing heavily, but fought it down before something burst—and before Gar happened to look up and catch sight of her face…

But Gar was out of it—his body was limp in hers and his eyelids drooping, a lazy half-smile slapped on his face, which caused Raven's own lips to twitch upwards. Raven realized she might be doing the whole comforting thing a little too much, and gently pushed Gar more onto the bed, letting go of his shoulder and lowering him more onto his pillow. The movement seemed to rouse him, as he turned towards her with tired question in his eyes. She watched him, not unkindly, and began to move the oxygen mask in place on his face again. Gar, however, raised a hand and impatiently swatted it away.

"No." His voice was hoarse, his throat dry. He swallowed and tried again. "No, tell me…what happened?"

Raven knew what he was referring to. She dropped the mask and sat on the bed by him. "It's my powers. I can…" she struggled, searching for a way to explain it. "…manage people's emotions? No, that's not quite right, it's hard to—"

"You made the fear go away," Gar interrupted.

Raven's face softened. She nodded. The amount of fear she had absorbed from Gar had been incredible—it had taken all her willpower not to dart from the room when she experienced Gar's panic. And she was still keeping it in check. Steve had warned her…he had warned the nurses: _"Keep him sedated or knocked out unless he's going to wake up with several familiar faces around him. When he finds out he's in a hospital, he'll freak if he doesn't go berserk on us."_ Steve had told them the only way he knew how to keep Gar calm in these types of situations was to be there with him, giving him physical support—and that had thus far only been for clinic visits. And she…Raven lowered her gaze, trying not to scowl at herself. Even though she had been the only one in the room, had insisted Steve go down and get something to eat, had been warned the previous dose of sedation would wear off soon, had promised to request more at the slightest twitch—she had fallen asleep. She was extremely lucky she had the abilities she did, or else something could've gone horribly wrong. _Stupid_.

"Thanks."

Raven looked up, confused at the gentle word. Gar was smiling softly at her.

"And not only for that," he continued, "but, you know, for staying here and all." His eyes flickered downwards, and she was surprised to feel a quick surge of embarrassed warmth travel through her—not her own. She realized that she was still connected to Gar's emotions…and was still holding Gar's hand. Coughing, she decided he was calm enough and dropped his hand, moving her own to her lap. That quick, pleasant tingle still lingered even after Gar's slight blush had faded away.

"No problem."

Gar contentedly watched Raven watch her lap, and suddenly wondered why exactly Raven was here…why _he_ was here.

With a flood, the events of the other night came back to him, crowding their way into his exhausted mind. Gasping, Gar struggled to sit up again, stunning Raven with his sudden vigor. "Wait a second, what are you _doing_?" she planted her hands on his shoulders, keeping him down and wondering if it was another panic attack. But she didn't sense any overwhelming fear, just…

"No, you wait a second—what _am_ I doing here?"

Raven's eyes bored into Gar's face, an air of suspicion and disbelief about her. "You…don't remember?"

Gar made a somewhat frustrated noise. "No, I remember—well, I remember coming home, and Steve was out, but I was…" Gar's brow furrowed, and Raven moved back to her chair. "Something was wrong with me, like I was gonna…"

Raven frowned as he hassled with his words. "Like you were gonna…?"

He heaved a sigh. "I dunno, I just felt terrible, sick—and so I went to the bathroom to take some medicine, and then…nothing."

"Well, that would make sense, as I found you lying on your bathroom floor unconscious."

Gar didn't miss Raven's attempt at her normal sarcastic bite, but smiled at the lack of mean spirit behind it. "Yeah, I guess it would."

The only sound in the room for a couple of minutes was the beeping of the heart monitor as they sat, lost in their own thoughts.

"So…"

Raven hesitated, and Gar looked up at the sound of her voice to see her pointedly staring into her lap, picking at a fingernail. "You didn't…did you…take any of the pills?"

It took a few seconds for Gar to comprehend what Raven was asking him. "No, I don't think I—wait, did you think…?"

Raven's refusal to meet his eyes was all he needed.

"_Hell_ no! Aw, come _on_…"

Raven flinched subtly at the angry undertones in his voice, continuing to pick away at the innocent nail. The room fell silent again, and she heard Gar shift in the bed.

"Thought you knew me better, Rae—I'm not that conceited."

Raven's head jerked up at the sound of her old nickname. He was leaning his head back against the pillow, eyes closed and face upturned. She bit back a chuckle. "You could fool anyone, sometimes…I'm sorry, it's just that they didn't tell me anything, and wouldn't let me—they wouldn't—I was so worried, and…" She paused. "I'm glad you're okay."

Gar didn't respond, and Raven wondered if he'd fallen asleep again…when he peeked through an eye, an exhausted but silly smile sneaking up his face.

"No fair...I finally gotcha to smile, and I didn't even tell a corny joke."

Startled, Raven brought a hand to her face as Gar really did fall asleep, shoulders sagging as he slumped into the bed, his small reserve of energy drained. It was barely there, but he had been right…

She was smiling.

* * *

Steve absently stirred some cream into his coffee, staring at but not seeing the framed oil painting in front of him, pathetically attempting to bring a more comely feel to the bland, pastel-colored hospital cafeteria. Groups of two or three people each, no more and hardly less, chit-chatted idly as they awaited loved ones' recovery, or twiddled their thumbs for tests and diagnosis to be concluded. A late attendee snagged a blueberry muffin from the counter with five interns trailing him, the cafeteria clerk reprimanding his retreating back as she put it on his tab. Four nurses snickered at the minor disturbance over their coffee, discussing patient moods and the lists of errands calling their names after their shift was up. A little boy asked his stressed mother rather loudly why this hospital didn't have a Mickey D's like the one in Los Angeles did. It was all very picturesque, for a hospital cafeteria. 

"Yo! Mr. Dayton! How's the day going for you?"

Kassie's call broke straight through the morning calm as she strode across the cafeteria, causing quite a few heads to turn. If the aggravated and mocking tones dripping from her voice didn't shoot down the sincerity of the question, the annoyance and anger written all over her face did.

Steve rubbed his eyes as she came up to him, trying to restore some life into his dull, done-in brain. Staying up and obsessively stressing all night did not do a body good. "Kassie," he sighed. "What's the matter…?"

"The _matter_?" She crossed her arms and gave an ironic, biting laugh. "I freaking ride up in the _ambulance_ with him, and the lady at the front desk won't let me know _shit_ about what the _fuck_ is _going_ _on_!"

Steve blinked at her language.

"I've been waiting her all night, trying to flag down someone to help me, but no one gives me a second glance! They ran him down the hall as soon as we got out, and haven't seen him since! He was like friggin _dying_, and I don't know the HELL is going on! I've been to I don't know _how_ many stupid nurses' stations or secretaries or whatnot, I don't know whatcha call them, but everyone denies my legitimacy!! Thirteen freaking hours in this place, and closest thing I have gotten to WHETHER MY FRIEND IS ALIVE OR NOT is, _'Sorry, miss, we're not allowed to give out patient information. Maybe you should try talking to…'_ And I know my shouting at you is not helping cuz you're flippin' exhausted, but could you please turn on the lights for me here??"

Sometime during her rant, Kassie had moved to be about an inch from Steve's face, arms rigidly flung out in frustration. Now she backed away from a wide-eyed Steve, breathing hard and glaring.

Steve cleared his throat. "Hnn…well, if I wasn't awake before, I am now…"

Kassie scowled, re-crossing her arms. "Sorry," she said a bit grumpily and a bit sheepishly. "It's been a _really_ long night."

Smiling, Steve nodded tiredly. "I bet. So were—"

"MR. D! Waddup, sir?"

The greasy, familiar scent of McDonald's wafted over Steve, followed by a strong clap to the back and an arm around his shoulder as he precariously balanced his coffee in an effort not to slosh it all over his shirt.

"Michael, get off him and get over here."

Michael released Steve with a wink, walking over to an impatient Kassie and thrusting a paper sack at her. "Here's your McMuffin and hash-brown, as ordered, cept you'll have to do with OJ cuz they didn't have apple juice. Dorks."

Kassie sent him a quick look of thanks, and then turned back towards Steve. Michael followed suit.

"Have _both_ of you been here all night?" Steve asked incredulously. From what Raven had told him, he had thought Kassie had been the only one who arrived at the hospital with her and Gar—well, more so with Gar, as Raven had simply teleported to beat the ambulances and have the hospital totally ready.

"For me, since about two in the morning," Michael replied. "Does that count?"

"I called him for, you know, support or something," Kassie explained. "Sitting alone in a hospital is only pleasant for so many hours, especially when no one will help you. Plus, he's my partner in crime for finding Gar in that jungle of a high school. We both deserve some answers, in my opinion."

The two watched Steve expectantly, waiting. Steve studied their faces for a minute, knowing that they were who Gar considered his closest friends outside…well, outside the Titans. He also knew they were right.

"Okay." He nodded. "Answers it is."

"Thank you," Kassie breathed—whether towards him or the heavens, Steve wasn't sure.

"Well, before you say anything, I'm gonna go on and take a wild guess," Michael interjected, "that's he's alive and possibly kickin, since you're out here sipping coffee instead of wringing your hands and sobbing or whatever."

Steve gave a small laugh. "Yes, as of right now he's fine, sedated but stable." He paused, looking at Michael. "Wait, do you already know what happened?"

Michael nodded. "Kassie had a lot of time to throw tantrums, but managed to tell me what had happened—as far as she knew—between it all."

Kassie didn't pay attention to the slight. "Can we see him? Or at least know where he _is_?"

"He's down on a ward by intensive care—"

"The ICU? But you just said—"

"Yes, let me finish. They just didn't want to move him too much, he's in room 1484, I think? But I don't think now's the time for visiting."

"Rats, I wanted to show him a video on my phone that might cheer him up. John and Nick can do some preeeetty stupid stuff when they've had too much pizza."

"_Michael_…"

"No, it's okay, Gar'll probably want to see you guys soon, when he wakes up. It'll do him good. Say, do you're parents know you're here and everything? I could call you when he's ready, and—"

"No, Mr. Dayton." Michael's face was suddenly intensely serious.

"Our parents know the situation and understand," Kassie added, equally serious. "But there are some questions that we still need to ask. And here may not be the best place to do so."

Something in their voices made Steve really stop and watch the two, an alarm going off in the back of his mind. The determined look in both faces…Steve nodded slightly, understanding.

"I see. Well then, follow me."

Just as the three headed towards the exit, a nurse in yellow walked in.

* * *

"He's WHAT??" 

"Shhh, calm down or you'll wake the whole Tower!"

"That's not necessarily a biggie on my list of concerns right now!"

Robin rubbed his temple. He had had a feeling Cyborg was going to react like this.

Early mornings in the Tower were normally quiet; everyone was still in bed, with the exception of Robin, who got up before the crack of dawn to train in the gym before breakfast, and occasionally Raven, who woke at least earlier than the others to meditate. Because Robin had stayed up late with Cyborg, going over the files and following a faint trail the hacker had left, he had slept in—and then had been woken up by his communicator going off. Now, he was sitting at the kitchen counter, having waited for a drowsy Cyborg to walk through the doors before telling him the news.

"Why didn't you come wake me up or something?!" Cyborg asked hotly. "We need to see him as soon as possible!"

"Cyborg," Robin snapped, his patience running thin. "I already told you, I've only been up for twenty minutes at most. And if we ran down there as soon as possible, how much attention do you think it would attract?!"

Cyborg angrily opened his mouth to debate further, but Robin continued.

"The hospital staff already knows something's up, seeing as they've had to call in a S.T.A.R. certified doctor and the Titan who's infamous for her misanthrope personality won't leave the side of an otherwise normal patient! We'd only add to the suspicions flying around if we all went."

Cyborg crossed his arms, practically spitting out his response. "Well, then what do you _suggest_ we do? I'm not about to just sit around with my best friend in the hospital!!"

Robin's face twitched, nostrils flaring. He hesitated. "I…don't know what we're gonna do, Cyborg. But I _do_ know we have to be careful about how we react—while I don't wanna sit around any more than you do, we _have_ to think about his safety first."

"And how are we gonna manage that if we're not around to evaluate the situation? To protect him??"

"Raven can keep us updated since she's already there, she might attract more attention by leaving again—and the others can't know about this yet…"

Cyborg slammed his fists down on the counter in front of Robin. "NO! _No_, man, I'm _not_ doing this—I've been obedient for you so far, supporting you and going along with your decisions no matter how _ridiculous_ or narrow-minded I think they are—_trusting_ you to do the right thing—but I'm NOT going to sit back this time. If he's in the hospital for the reasons we fear, I'm going to be there for him and I'm NOT going to let him get hurt again!!"

Robin leaned back in his chair as Cyborg leaned forward with pretty much every word he said.

"I'm _tired_ of watching my friends fall apart around me—everyone on the team has been affected by his absence, _you_ know it, _I_ know it…hell, _everyone_ knows it!! Even Kid Flash knows it, though he doesn't really know what it's all about! It's about time we STOP trying to ignore it, and _be_ there for him like friends are supposed to be!"

Cyborg's hot breath brushed Robin's face, as he was only mere inches away from the Boy Wonder's nose.

"_You_ might be too much of a coward to face what you yourself believes is a mistake, _you_ might be horrified at the prospect that you actually got close to people after your oh-so-tragic past, _you_ might be scared outta your mind to show that you really do care, but I am NOT going to let that get in _my_ way. I am GOING to that hospital to see my friend with or without you, not later, not soon, but NOW."

Cyborg stared Robin down for a moment, eyes narrowed, sweat standing out on the human side of his face, modified body heaving with anger. Robin returned his glare from under his mask, his own expression one of frustration. The experience was rather reminiscent of the alpha-leader stand-offs they had so long ago, with the beginning of the Teen Titans. And it was broken in the similar fashion of those days.

"Please, friends, which friend of Cyborg's is in need of protection at this hospital?"

Starfire's voice surprised both of the boys, causing them to jerk their heads around to face the confused alien girl gliding cautiously towards them. Busy yelling and being yelled at, neither had heard her enter and didn't know quite how to react to her inquiring stare. Robin was the first to speak.

"How long…how much did you hear, Starfire?"

As Starfire came up beside Robin at the counter, Cyborg shifted away. Starfire watched the two boys carefully before answering, able to sense the tension sifting between them. It was a familiar sort of tension that Starfire had come to associate with only specific conflicts between the two—she had never been one to easily forget what tore her friends apart. And putting that with what she had heard them discussing, she felt she knew what exactly this was about.

"Enough…" she replied slowly. "But please, tell me—what is 'the matter'?"

Cyborg and Robin made brief eye contact, ignoring the inquisitive, bright green eyes observing their exchange. Cyborg bit his lip, sighing. Robin didn't pay any attention. "It's nothing you should be worried about, Star," he falsely reassured her. "Just something Cyborg and I wanted to discu—"

"Do _not_ leave me out of this, Robin."

Robin was a bit taken aback by the firmness in Starfire's voice, and even more so by the slight glint her gaze. A small cough from Cyborg's direction implied he was, as well—while Starfire may be innocent and naïve in Earth and human customs in general, at times like these her friends were reminded she was not completely oblivious when it came to emotions and interaction. Just because she was alien did not mean that her race didn't have emotions or interaction as well; and, yes, she _had_ lived with the team for the past five years of her life…

"I'm telling her, man. This is seriously enough."

Robin looked sharply over at Cyborg, Starfire curiously following suit. But the hard set of Cyborg's face told Robin discussion and persuasion were over. All Cyborg was doing now was asking Robin for permission out of courtesy—he would tell whether Robin wanted him to or not. And besides, he knew Cyborg was right this time.

"Fine." Robin nodded his head, slightly peeved. And as an afterthought, "But _just_ her. We're not getting Kid Flash involved in this, as he doesn't need to be involved."

For one reason or another, Robin didn't think Raven would be too pleased if the newer member got involved.

Starfire anxiously leaned forward on the counter. "So? What information do you wish to share, friends?"

"Starfire…" Cyborg began. He looked towards Robin, who raised an eyebrow as if asking, _the hell are you looking at me for? You're the one who wanted to tell her_. It was enough to prompt Cyborg. "It's about BB—I mean—it's about Garfield—"

Starfire instantly shot up, her face flashing from happiness at the mention of the previously taboo subject to concern at the uneasy tone Cyborg was using. "Friend Beast Boy! Is he okay? What has happened? Need I prepare a Tamaranian folksong of brolgbat or risthsleg?!"

Cyborg sucked in a breath. "Aaaaactually, Star…he's in the hospital. So maybe a get well card?"

Starfire froze. She turned towards Robin, worry etched through her features. "Is this true?"

Robin solemnly nodded. "Yes…he had an accident. Raven's already down at the hospital with him—"

"That is good! Friend Raven will protect him with all her might until we get down there, yes? We must leave immediately!"

Robin brushed off the _'see-I-was-right-we-should-go-visit-him'_ looks Cyborg was shooting him. "I…yes, Star, but you need to understand—"

"Glorious! I will bring him the card of being well and we will converse with our friend until he is better! Let us depart!"

"Star! Listen to me!" Robin gripped Starfire's arm, getting her to sit still and turn towards him. "Listen—this is important. The last time I spoke with Raven, Garfield was still more or less in critical condition, stabilized but only barely."

Both Starfire and Cyborg stared at Robin, Cyborg only just hearing this as well. And now that he though about it, actually, he had reacted before even asking…

"Hold up a sec, Robin. What exactly did happen to him?"

Robin cringed the tiniest bit, as if fearing the question would be asked and now fearing answering it. "Well…" he avoided his teammates' eyes. "The last time—when I spoke with Raven, she explained—she was the one who had found him…"

"Yes?" Starfire prodded apprehensively.

Robin hesitated a moment longer, and then looked directly at the faces of his friends, his mouth set in a grim line.

"He was found with a bottle of sleeping pills. Overdosed—they think he tried to commit suicide."

Shock weighed down the air like a thick, wool blanket, covering the senses of two out of the three friends. Robin watched them, wondering what they would think—whether they would believe it or not. He hadn't wanted to at first—had shouted at Raven through the communicator, refusing to believe—but now, he wasn't so sure anymore.

The motionless silence was broken when Starfire suddenly shot up from her chair again, this time into the air. She hovered above Cyborg's and Robin head for a minute, not looking down or turning around, then shot off down the hall to the passage that lead down and out of the Tower. Robin watched the back of her head as she flew away, knowing without a second though where she was going.

"C'mon, Cyborg," Robin said as he jumped over the counter, thumping his friend's mechanical shoulder as he passed, striding for the exit as well. "We gotta a hospital bed to visit."


	23. Part 3: Explanations? As If!

**Author's Note:** Ehehehehehe…guess I owe you guys an explanation, huh? One and a half weeks, did I say? Ahem…well, I'm terribly sorry but I don't really have an excuse. I'm slacker, I'm horrible, and I've never been good at slaving over stuff. -.-

Austria was freaking awesome, thanks to those who wished me a good time—and I _was_ a good girl and worked on stuff while I was on the plane (eight hours in front of two drunken men give you plenty of time for inspiration xD), but as soon as I got back, I was like, "_Crud._ Guess who has writer's block?" And from there…well, there was summerwork and then there was the seventh Potty book. That didn't help much with keeping me on task. But I mean, come on, way to leave _no_ room for speculation, huh Rowling? Poor little Potter fanfic authors. I mean, SHEESH, _nineteen_ _years_ later? And all the names confused me…_desperately_…I've never been good with names. It was a good read, I'll give it that—but I pride myself in having it all figured out (the main points, anyway) BEFORE the book even came out. Hehe, that's right, I'm bragging.

Ahem, so I guess that's kinda an excuse—a mix of writer's block, some summerwork guilt, and one big-ass distraction. Sorry…?

* * *

**Dislaimer: I don't own any of the characters from the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

The door to Gar's hospital room banged open, waking Gar from his half-dose and causing Raven to jump up from her chair, hood and battle stance in place. As soon as she saw who had burst in, however, she immediately relaxed.

"Gar! Thank _god_ you're okay!"

Steve rushed to Gar's side, embracing him in a monster hug before he actually had pieced together what was going on. "Steve," he choked out quietly, "You're crushing me!"

"You are okay, aren't you?" Steve anxiously asked, appearing to pay Gar's remark no attention but releasing his foster son anyway, holding him out at arm's length for inspection. "Has the doctor seen you yet? When did you wake up? Is anything wrong?"

Raven watched Steve's worrying from underneath her hood, a small smile in place. And then she froze.

"You sound like a hen mother, Mr. Dayton," Kassie drawled as she sauntered up behind Steve, arms crossed and a grumpy scowl on her face. Her expression softened, though, as she looked at the still bleary-eyed Gar. "Hey, buddy—quite a night, wasn't it?" Michael was not too soon after, a relieved grin plastered on his face. "See, toldya he'd be alive and kickin'."

"Guys," Gar breathed, noticing the dark circles under Steve's eyes, Kassie's exhausted face and frazzled hair, Michael's tired eyes and smile. He knew they had been here the whole night without having to ask. He smiled warmly at them. "I'm fine, don't worry."

The three watched him, infinitely glad he was alive and seemed fine at the moment, albeit a bit worse for wear. "We ran into Nurse Beckett on the way over here, she said you had woken up and the doctor would be here shortly," Steve began, never letting his eyes leave Gar. His face went dark, his voice a bit lower. "It's about time we found out what happened, Gar—you were found unconscious in the bathroom…and—"

Knowing where this was going, Gar stopped Steve with a glare. "I didn't _touch_ those pills, okay? I just wasn't feeling well, and apparently I managed to pass out before I did."

Steve looked slightly taken aback. "Pills…?" His face lit up with realization. "Oh, no, I wasn't—the doctors told me earlier that the tests didn't show any signs of drugs in your system…of course, they couldn't listen to _me_ when I told them so." Steve suddenly sounded peeved, a mixture of exasperation and disgust on his face. "It's not like I'm practically your father or anything, no they had to go and make sure because of _protocol_…pfft…"

Gar's smile widened. He should've known better.

"Ahem—well, not to butt in or anything, but Mr. Dayton, speaking of what happened…or what's going on…" Kassie had moved around to the foot of Gar's bed while he and Steve had been speaking, and now sat down lightly on it, staring at Gar pointedly over her shoulder. "I'm just gonna go out on a limb and say it: you're not from Maine, are you?"

There was about twenty seconds of total silence while Kassie watched Gar expectantly before he managed a slightly strangled, yet beyond intelligent, response.

"_Huh?_"

Kassie sighed and stared over at the left of the bed, eyebrows raised. Gar followed her gaze to a stock-still Raven standing by the room's window, hood up with a mildly surprised expression on her shadowed face. Gulping, Gar turned back towards Steve, who was grimly watching Kassie, and then Michael, who was calmly looking at nothing in particular—but Gar could tell he was listening attentively. Gar faced Kassie again, who had switched her gaze to him, forcing a sheepish laugh. "You got me," he said weakly, holding his hands up, "I'm from Connecticut."

Michael gave a chuckle and Kassie rolled her eyes, the tension that had escalated considerably within the past couple seconds deflating somewhat. Steve rubbed his temple with a slight smile on his face, deciding to take over the conversation. "I'm not sure this is the best time to talk about this, Kassie…Michael," Steve said, a stern edge to his voice.

Kassie furrowed her brow and opened her mouth impatiently, but Michael beat her to it. "Sure, Mr. Dayton," he said quite cordially, earning a confused glare from Kassie. "Seeing as Gar _barely survived the night_, is most likely _exhausted_, and the doctor's about to come, I totally understand." Kassie lowered her head ruefully, _almost_ abashed. "But we _will_ discuss it later, right?"

Steve watched Michael's politely grinning face, and gave a quick nod. And right then the doctor chose to walk in, undeniably pushing the discussion to later.

Letting herself into the room quietly, the doctor smiled at the gathering that had formed around her patient. "Quite a party you have in here, Mr. Logan," she said not unkindly, shooting a smile in the direction of the bedridden Gar while she shut the door behind her. Kassie, Michael, and Steve turned towards her as she walked up to the bed, Raven watching her warily. She was middle-aged, between forty or fifty, and Gar couldn't help but smile back, instantly taking a liking to her. She had a motherly air about her, the frazzled loose bun at the nape of her neck and warm brown eyes doing nothing to discourage the feeling. Her smooth, light-hazelnut skin was only broken by worry wrinkles around her eyes and mouth, giving her a wizened look. Thin-framed glasses balanced on her nose as she studied the medical charts she was holding before speaking again.

"I'm Dr. Ronnie Smith, Mr. Logan, and _you_, I have a feeling, are going to be my most interesting patient for the next couple of weeks." Looking away from the charts, she held out her hand, which Garfield shook after a delayed second. She smiled at him again. "As I'm sure you're wondering, Gar, I am here to brief you on the situation as of now and help by answering any questions you may have—which I'm sure there are a lot. But first—" She looked over her glasses in Steve's direction. "—yes, Mr. Dayton, I am from the S.T.A.R. facilities and I am well aware of everything about your son's conditions." Steve nodded, his unspoken question answered.

"Now, before we get started…" Dr. Smith glanced over at the eager-looking Kassie and slightly bemused-looking Michael as she flipped through some pages of the charts, marking something with a pen. "Are we sure everyone in this room is…appropriately here?"

"Yes."

It was Gar who had spoken, surprising quite a few in the room, but his quick, firm tone denied argument. Realizing everyone in the room was looking at him, he then cracked a bit. "I mean," he said nervously, "anyone who's willing to stick around all night for little ol' me has my stamp of approval."

Dr. Smith smiled, and Gar didn't miss the grateful looks sent his way by both Kassie and Michael—nor the slightly piqued one by Steve. But he really did think they deserved to know…plus the fact that they already seemed to know enough…Gar had a feeling he'd really get a scolding for _that_ later on.

"Okay, then." Dr. Smith placed the charts aside, removing the stethoscope hung around her neck. "First I'm just going to do a routine check-up." She moved around the bed until she was right next to Gar, opposite of Steve. "You can ask basic questions, but I'll get down to the mechanics of what's going on as soon as I'm finished."

As Dr. Smith began her examination by first checking Gar's lungs with her stethoscope, the room was surprised yet again by who chose to speak first. "I believe this'll be basic enough, Dr. Smith," Raven droned from beside the doctor, having moved up during the previous conversations. She still kept her distance, of course. "Are you bringing us good news, or bad news?"

Dr. Smith didn't answer for a minute, and Gar knew she was hesitating when she kept the cold stethoscope on his bare shoulder blade for a bit longer after she had asked him to breathe out. While the others had accepted Dr. Smith readily, as soon as she had walked in, Raven had been able to push aside the professional yet comforting façade Dr. Smith had developed over the years to confront her patients with—it helped sometimes to be an empath. But then again, what she had felt…a mixture of puzzlement, and subtle sadness…almost fear for her patient—for Gar.

Dr. Smith finally answered. "Well, I did say you would be my most interesting patient for now, didn't I?" She gave a small chuckle, and this time it didn't take an empath to hear the hidden tones of worry. Steve and Raven exchanged glances across the bed.

The room was silent for the remainder of the quick examination—and awkwardly so. There was a shared eagerness between everyone, but no one seemed courageous enough to actually speak up as Dr. Smith took notes and prodded this or tapped that. It wasn't until she was checking Gar's lymph nods and whatnot for swelling that the silence was broken—and by she herself.

"Look," she suddenly said, dropping her hands into her lap and turning to face both Raven and Kassie and Michael. "While I'm sure you're all very concerned for your friend, I would feel better if I spoke with him and Mr. Dayton first—separately, alone. Then they may decide whether to or how to explain the situation to you."

At her words, Gar saw Steve's face turn an unearthly pale. Frowning, he looked away from his foster father towards his friends—and saw Kassie angrily preparing to protest; Raven and Michael didn't look all that happy either. Realization suddenly dawned on Gar as he absorbed everyone's expressions, and he decided to take the reigns on this one—they were practically waiting for him to do so. He cleared his throat lightly, gaining their attention before Kassie lost her temper again.

"Sorry, guys," he smiled sheepishly, "but you'll definitely be the first to know."

The three looked at him, but didn't object. However, the curt, tight-lipped nod Kassie gave before stalking out into the hallway was enough to make Gar feel extremely guilty—even Michael's apologetic 'sorry-she's-being-an-ass' shrug didn't help. And Raven…her eyes searched his face calmly, as if determining for herself whether Gar was being serious or not, before following the other two out of the room.

As the door clicked shut, Steve immediately switched his gaze to Dr. Smith. "Well?" he asked. He was still somewhat pale, and his voice wavered ever so slightly. "What was so bad you couldn't tell us in front of others?"

Dr. Smith smiled tightly, moving around to the foot of the bed once more, placing Gar's medical charts aside. Then she faced Gar. "_I _know who you are," she began, "but I had a feeling your two classmates…or acquaintances…didn't."

Gar eyed her suspiciously. "My _friends_…yeah, so what of it?"

"I've been on your case since your little incident—I was assigned shortly after my colleague, Dr. James Jameson, was. Mr. Logan…" she paused, looking down. Gar felt increasing apprehension as he realized she was contemplating what to say next. Bad news was always hard to share. "I really wish you had allowed S.T.A.R. labs to watch over for a while. I might have been able to see this coming sooner."

While shortly upset at her mention of the superhero medical facility, Gar's mouth went dry at her last words.

"What is it?" He felt the similar sense of dread rising in the pit of his stomach, like he had that fateful day so many weeks ago. "What's wrong with me?"

"Mr. Logan. Your sakutia has returned."

* * *

"Why? _Why_ can't we know?" 

Kassie paced up and down the hall outside the door, pivoting every couple steps. Michael watched her bemusedly as he leaned nonchalantly against the wall—more like he was waiting in line for a hot dog than waiting to hear an obviously bad diagnosis of what was a matter with his friend. Raven also watched Kassie on her place against the wall, further off—she was reminded of Robin, watching the redhead pace irritably.

"Now it's just even more obvious he's hiding something," she muttered to herself—though rather loudly.

"And _you_—" She was suddenly pointing at Raven, stopping her movement for a brief second. "_You_ just confirm everything I thought in the first place. Why's he still hiding?!" She resumed pacing.

As Kassie continued muttering, Raven realized Michael had somehow sidled right up next to her on the wall, and was now leaning to the side to speak quietly in her ear. "Don't pay any attention to her. She's extremely grumpy without at least six hours of sleep. It's nothing personal." The two continued to watch Kassie, but Raven had the feeling Michael wasn't done talking.

"Er…" Raven smirked. She had been right. Michael didn't look at her, but continued following Kassie with his eyes. "So…would you like, smack me if I decided to take advantage of the situation—"

Raven narrowed her eyes.

"—and asked you for your autograph?"

Raven stared at Michael, not entirely sure whether he was joking or not.

And then Raven heard an all too familiar voice call from down the hall.

"Friend Raven!!"

* * *

Steve's jaw locked at Dr. Smith's words, and he immediately shot up from his seat at the head of Gar's bed, his stance defiant. "No. I don't believe you." 

Dr. Smith's eyes were doeful. "Mr. Dayton…I'm sorry, but—"

"No," Steve spat. Dr. Smith looked taken aback, and frowned. "You're lying. You said you worked for S.T.A.R. labs, right? This is just some ploy to get him into your hands, isn't it?"

"…Mr. Dayton, I don't think you know what you're saying right this moment. Would you please sit back down—"

"A ruse!" Dr. Smith stared, shocked at the accusatory finger Steve was pointing at her. "That's all this is!! You BASTARDS!"

"Mr. _Dayton!_ I beg your _pardon_—"

"What does it take for you all to _leave_ him _alone_?! WHAT do you _honestly_ want?!" Steve gave a hysteric laugh, no longer pointing but running a hand through his hair, pacing, his eyes distant. Dr. Smith watched him, a mixture of pity and slight anger on her face. "He's…he's _been through enough_…but this. _This…!_ What will it _take_, YOU SONS OF BITCHES, TO LET HIM BE!!"

"_Mr. Dayton!_" Dr. Smith barked, her face flushed. "_That will be enough!_ SIT DOWN, now!"

Dr. Smith watched, quite incredulously, as Steve continued to ignore her. Never…such denial—glancing at Gar, she saw not only had he not said a word, but also hadn't moved since her announcement. Instead, he was staring straight ahead, mouth slightly agape—he didn't flinch at his foster-father's raised voice, seemingly oblivious to everything around him. His eyes were unblinking, blank—vacant…Dr. Smith suddenly forgot about the still raging Steve, apprehension creeping up her spine. Too vacant, and he was too still…

"I can't believe the LENGTHS you _assholes_ would go through JUST to get your hands on him, it's unbelieva—THE HELL ARE YOU DOING! GET THE HELL AWAY FROM HIM!!"

"Don't you _dare_ jump at me, Mr. Dayton, I WILL CALL SECURITY! YOUR SON—"

"DON'T TALK TO ME ABOUT MY SON, YOU BITCH—"

"_WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING, STEVE?!"_

Silence. Both doctor and Steve froze at the furious new voice, too involved in their shouting match to even notice the door had opened and closed, admitting someone else into the room. He now stepped forward, calmly watching the nearly-rabid Steve.

"Sit. Down. And stop being a dick." Steve worked his mouth for a minute, and then looked around the room, as if suddenly coming back to himself. He caught a glimpse of Gar, motionless on the bed, and seemed to physically deflate. Dr. Smith gave an audible sigh of relief, realizing the man was cooperating.

After another pause, Robin stepped forward. "Now what is going _on_?"

Dr. Smith decided she wouldn't kick him out.

* * *

"That was _really_ creepy." Michael shivered, shaking off the last effects of Raven's teleportation powers. After a second of thought, he added with an apologetic look towards Raven, "No offense." 

Kassie stood statue-still, thin-lipped, and looking as if she was about ready to explode. "What. Are. We. Doing. _Here?_"

The last word came out strangled with rage, causing Michael to flinch.

Raven chose not to answer, secretly satisfied with Robin's signal for her to dump the two in a locked room down a couple floors in a vacant hall. Things had gotten messy when Starfire fired herself down the hall to engulf Raven in one of her monster bear-hugs, messier when the rest of the Titans had shown up right behind her, and even messier when—after a few moments of awkward and confounded silence between the four super-powered teen crime-fighters and the two average high school students—yelling voices had erupted behind the door of the room they all surrounded. Very many things had happened at once: Kassie began to demand explanations, Cyborg began to demand what was going on, Michael began to demand _what_ exactly the Titans had to do with this, Starfire began to demand to be let in the room to protect Gar, and Robin had more or less screamed in Raven's mind _'Get those two the fuck outta here!'_ before barging in the room himself, ordering Starfire and Cyborg to stay put.

So, Raven guessed it needn't have been a _locked_ room, necessarily—but the jealous little voice in the very back of her mind couldn't help but whisper, _Hell yeah, Gar's OUR friend, bitches!_

…Right. Maybe she would find a quiet place to meditate after all this.

"Hello? _Did you hear me_? What the _fuck_ are we doing _here_?!"

Raven prepared to teleport back up.

"Kassie, calm down and watch your—hey, _hell_ no, where do you think you're going?!"

Raven felt a hand roughly grasp her shoulder, gripping a fistful of her cape as well. She froze, and struggled to keep her temper in check.

"Please remove your hand from me."

"Not until we get some freaking answers!!" She felt his grip slacken, though, and closed her eyes, fighting down rage.

"Your hand. Now."

Michael was a smart boy, and heard what was usually hidden seeping through Raven's voice. He let go.

Raven remained for a moment more, calming herself, repeating all too well-known words in her head…_Azarath, Mentrion, Cinthos_…involuntarily, she felt her powers sensing the auras confusion, anxiety, fear, anger, and grief surrounding the two behind her. She softened a tad.

"Look," she droned, not turning around. "I'm sorry you two have been pulled into this. I believe you know more than you should." She shifted so she could just see them out of the corner of her eye, over her shoulder. "Don't let on that you do."

The both stood, speechless, as she eyed them for a moment longer. Then darkness started to surround her.

"Someone will come down to retrieve you later. Do not try anything…I'm sorry."

Her words echoed eerily through the room as the last of blackness swallowed her into nothingness, leaving Kassie and Michael to stare at empty space.


	24. Part 3: WANTED

**Author's Note: **So this is what I was doing while I should have been working on a 4000-word extended essay, studying for history exam, studying _Othello_, doing a quote journal for _Othello_, doing Calculus, filling outcollege applications, writing scholarships essays, cleaning my room, and most importantly SLEEPING. And that's only half of a very, very long list. So yeah. You _better_ enjoy this. PLEASE.

On a side note—I'm looking for a COWRITER for my Titans Mini-Project. I've gotten wonderful response to it in the form of too many requests for me to handle on top of everything else. So I need a hand. Anyone interested?

And oh yeah—**Tokoyo**, this update was prompted mainly by you!! Hope you have a great homecoming!

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

His mind was numb.

Gar couldn't really think as he sat in the hospital bed—it was hard to. A blanket of nothingness seemed to drop down around him, silencing and muffling his senses to the world surrounding him. He didn't really hear Steve reach his breaking point and explode; he didn't hear the angry battle of voices between his guardian and his doctor. He didn't notice Robin enter the room and pacify the two sides, assuming his natural leader-related pedestal. He didn't hear Dr. Smith calmly but hurriedly explain what the situation was to Robin, didn't hear Steve break down again during her explanation, but this time on the verge of tears. He didn't really notice anything except his overwhelmingly loud breathing, the words of Dr. Smith echoing through his blank thoughts: _"…Sakutia…returned…"_

"Garfield?"

Gar felt a hand on his shoulder, gently jarring him in an attempt to get a response. Absently, Gar glanced at the green-gloved hand and looked up into the concerned face of Robin, brow furrowed and mouth set in a frown. Staring at the Titan leader, Gar blinked a couple times and began coming back to himself.

"He might be suffering acute signs of shock," Dr. Smith murmured worriedly, fingering her stethoscope as she studied her patient. Robin, however, had seen the barely perceptible shift in Gar's expressionless face.

"Garfield." There was more conviction and determination in Robin's voice as he saw the forest green eyes focus in on his face, leaving the blank, dead look that had been reflected from within their depths only seconds before. Glancing over at Gar as Dr. Smith explained the situation had scared Robin rather nicely—he _never_ wanted to see such an empty look on any of his friends' faces ever again.

"Garfield, I need you to say something so I know you're not a vegetable."

Gar registered Robin looking at him, his mouth moving—it took him a second to actually hear the Titan's words, though. Robin stared at the impassive Gar for a moment, and then saw the younger boy's eyes dilate for a fraction of a second before he blinked and shrugged Robin's hand off. Still feeling slightly dazed, Gar mumbled in all seriousness the first thing that came to his mind…

"Sakutia's such a bitch."

The room was completely silent for about half a second before Robin let out a bark of laughter and Steve Dayton sighed loudly. Dr. Smith visibly relaxed and let a mild smile slip onto her face. "Nice to have you back with us, Mr. Logan."

Gar attempted a grin, but found his lip only twitch slightly instead. He ignored the kind and relieved gazes on him and watched his hands, lying limply in his lap. He felt like he needed to pinch himself, and then he would wake up and he'd be at the Tower in his old bed, all of this a cruel, psychological joke some brutal mastermind villain was playing on him. _It's not fair_, he thought dully. He'd already been through losing one life and adapting to another more than anyone ever should—and now this? Gar did not feel fear, no; rather, there was an awful and heavy weight in the pit of his stomach, sapping all his energy and strength both physically and mentally. He wanted to just lie down in the hospital bed and pull the sheets over his head. Gar's breathing slowed and he blinked rapidly, realizing with slight surprise his eyes were extremely moist.

"So." He cleared his throat and looked towards Dr. Smith, distracting himself. "I haven't had a head cold for the past two weeks, have I?"

Dr. Smith shook her head slowly. "No, I have reason enough to believe those were probably the early-stage symptoms of the disease taking hold once again. You weren't…" She paused, hesitating as a person about to commit taboo does. "You were never entirely cured of Sakutia, we know this from the old reports concerning you. Instead, it was just forced into a suspended, dormant state—and now, with your powers, or more technically your 'cure' gone, it's attacking your body once again."

Out of the corner of his eye, Gar noticed Robin rubbing a temple, arms crossed and weight shifted—very much like a parent impatient and frustrated with the naivety of a child. Something dawned on him. Turning away from Dr. Smith completely as she finished speaking, Gar looked directly at Robin and said quietly, "You already knew this, didn't you?"

Robin halted in his movements and straightened himself, closely watching Gar's face. He looked as if he was about to deny it, come up with an excuse, but then merely nodded curtly. He wet his lips. "Yeah. Yes, I did."

Steve and the doctor looked at Robin sharply in surprise. Gar watched him expectantly.

He sighed. "I had Batman look at your genetic code after the Main Street collapse, and he evaluated it for me and saw what was coming about two or three weeks ago. He gave me back material to work with and explained the situation to me at a diner."

"Wait a sec," Steve suddenly spoke up, all signs of previous distress dispelled with an inching return of his earlier fury to his voice. "You mean to tell me you have been sitting on this information for _three_ _weeks_?!"

Robin didn't face Steve and replied calmly, "I had a good reason to." Steve angrily opened his mouth, but Robin cut him off by addressing Gar. "I want to explain what is going on," he said to Gar, rubbing the back of his neck, "because you need to know. I think it's time, though, to let the other Titans in as well…"

Robin crossed his arms nervously, waiting for what Gar assumed to be his permission. "You mean…" Gar swallowed, mouth suddenly dry. "…they're all here?"

"Right outside the door."

Not knowing whether he should be as pleased as he was at that moment when he had just been told his body was again succumbing to a fatal African disease, Gar simply watched Robin for a moment longer before nodding his head slightly. Robin gave him a small smile, and went over to the door.

"FRIEND BEAST BOY!!!"

Buried in a bone-crushing hug, velvety-red locks and the faint scent of mustard in his face, Gar had absolutely _no_ idea what the hell was happening for a good ten seconds before he managed a half-squeak of actual pain.

"Starfire! Get off the little man, your crushing the life outta him for _real_ this time!"

The pressure was relieved slightly, although Starfire still remained glued to him—and he swore he heard a slight sniffling coming from the head digging into his shoulder. Shock wearing off, Gar gave a crooked smile and weakly hugged Starfire back. "Hey, Star," he said into her ear, "you better let go soon or Robin's gonna crucify me outta jealousy."

Starfire laughed, too happy to blush, and finally let go. "Oh, friend Beast Boy, I am ever so happy to meet you again!" Starfire blubbered, holding Gar at arms length. She seemed like she was going to bury him in another hug when suddenly a face Gar knew way too well and had missed way too much popped up between the two, witty and wide grin in place.

"I would say, 'Hey there, grass stain!', but that'd be just kinda awkward."

Gar snorted. "Long time no see, tin man."

Cyborg laughed cheerfully and enveloped Gar in his own sort of bear hug, though not quite as crushing as Starfire's. "You don't know how much we've missed you, man," Cyborg said thickly.

Gar felt a lump from in his throat. "Ditto," he whispered back.

The two friends continued hugging for a moment longer before Cyborg released Gar and backed away to stand beside Robin and Starfire. Gar didn't realize someone else had appeared by his elbow until she softly called his name. "Garfield."

Gar's heart leaped, both startled by the voice and recognizing almost instantaneously who it belonged to. Gar looked up into the softly smiling face of Raven, and was speechless. She was smiling again…

Robin cleared his throat to gain the attention of the room, traces of a smile still on his face from watching the reunion of his team—his friends, his family. Everyone turned to him, and he met all of their gazes individually before focusing in on the three who had previously been outside.

"Titans," he said in all seriousness, "I am going to tell you something now, but I do _not_ want you to panic or freak out in any way, shape, or form, you hear me?" They all narrowed their eyes. "It's important that I'm able to explain everything efficiently, correctly, and quickly—time is not on our side, and I want to get to the bottom of this mess as soon as possible, god help me."

The last part Robin seemed to mutter to himself more than anyone else present, but no one questioned him or interrupted him—suspicion heightened, however. Robin rubbed his temple, and glanced at the floor, getting ready to continue.

"Cyborg, you knew this was coming and I'm sorry you're the only one—Raven and Starfire, I should have told you much sooner." Surprise and then apprehension flashed across Cyborg's face at Robin's words, confusion mirrored in the girls' faces. Robin took a deep breath. "Garfield is in the hospital because the disease that nearly killed him as a child has returned."

Cyborg's mouth was set in a grim line, and Gar heard a quiet gasp from beside him. Gar peered at Raven out of the corner of his eye, and then did a double-take—her navy eyes were glistening, although from fear, shock, anger, or something else, Gar couldn't really tell…

"You mean…" Starfire's voice sounded very small in the silence of the hospital room, only accompanied by the soft, methodical beeping of the heart monitor. "…You mean, Sakutia?"

Throughout the years, each member of the Titans had come to know the basics of the others' past, whether by permission or sneaking—and that was enough. Robin hesitated before answering, as if doing so would make the fact a cold, hard reality. He gulped. "Yeah, Star."

The Titans were silent for a moment as they digested the information—then Cyborg spoke, only directly to Robin. "So does this mean…?"

Robin stared—nodded. He turned to the rest of the room. "I just revealed that I've known for a while that his Sakutia would return—I just didn't know how or when…and there's reason why I couldn't figure it out, why I didn't let anyone know except Cyborg."

He paused, and Gar felt Raven shift irritably beside him; he risked a glance up at her face and saw something that made him smile ever-so-slightly—she was fuming. At least, in her own attempting-to-remain-monotone way…but he knew she was fuming, and knew that meant she was worried about him. Despite the situation, Gar once again felt a giddiness rise in him, and pushed down the slight, happy color in his cheeks. He _did_ want to know why Robin had decided to withhold rather…life-threatening…information—really.

Robin sighed and looked directly at Gar, mask boring into forest-green, inquiring eyes. "Gar…Cyborg and I…we…well, we think—we think someone's after you."

Gar blinked. "After me?"

"…_After_ you."

"What…exactly do you mean?"

Robin threw a glance in Steve's direction at the sound of his voice. He stared into space, scrunching his face into the expression of one struggling, thinking hard about the right thing to say. "I need you all to think back to what we discussed that day when this all happened—when we were attacked, when the street collapsed. So far, Cyborg and I have found a lot of evidence—examining, going back to the site—to suggest what we deduced that day had been correct. But what we didn't know then that we know now is that _you_ were purposefully singled out, Gar. No such thing as coincidence."

Gar felt a familiar sense of dejá-vu. "But why _me_? How do you know?"

Robin watched Gar steadily, like debating if he could take the blow or not. He sighed again. "The why part I can't particularly answer…but…"

"But what?"

"…The type of radiation dosed out that day was far from an accident—it was made specifically to reverse the exact work that your father's machine—the ES-1403—had done years before."

Gar didn't move, keeping very still—and then shook his head. "No, I—what—?"

Cyborg stepped forward. "I know we don't need to spell it out for you but, come on. Someone wants you to _die_, man."

Gar kept shaking his head, not really aware he was doing so anymore.

"It all fits together—the radiation was only designed for you, and they even managed to figure out how to keep the Sakutia dormant for a while…" Robin testified his findings, and the words fell rigid, tasteless from his mouth. "If they don't want you dead, they at least want something from you."

The room was silent, absorbing the information. Cyborg peered over at Robin, who was attentively watching Gar's face for his reaction. Sighing, Cyborg decided he should speak. "Gar," he nudged with a soft voice.

Hearing Cyborg, Gar didn't say anything—he simply looked again towards Robin and waited for him to continue.

Realizing Gar wasn't going to break out in a seizure, Robin plowed ahead. "Cyborg and I have been poking around, searching for leads and clues as to what's really going on here. Keeping an eye out for any funny business in or around town, taking a look at police profiles and such—"

"We figured whoever's doing this had connections to your dad," Cyborg interrupted. "Or at least his research. How else would they have known how to use it to their advantage? So I started with his colleagues and friends, looking for any suspicious activity—whether involved with them by chance or not. I've found a couple of what looked like possible leads, but all came out…dead."

Robin bobbed his head. "I've been checking criminal activity spikes and folds, on the off chance that our man might be involved—usually those out for blood do anything in order to get it. But still…"

He sighed.

Cyborg turned to Steve. "Listen, Mr. Dayton—we need to know anything and everything we can know about Gar's parents and their little project. Who was involved, where, and when. Can you do that?"

Steve stared, then shook his head doubtfully. "I really don't know. I received all of Gar's medical documents and his birth certificate when I started taking care of him, but…the state government has all rights to and owns any papers involving him until he's eighteen—and most of anything concerning you, Gar, is confidential. I'll try to glean what I can, but I don't know."

"Right." Robin bit his lip. "The government doesn't really love to cooperate with us all that much, with all the super-hero conspiracy theories flying around. It's gonna be even more interesting since Gar is technically only a citizen now—_shit_. This'll be fun…"

"Perhaps we could go to the African government?" Starfire chimed brightly, getting everyone's attention. Robin looked thoughtful for a moment before Gar spoke, shaking his head.

"No," he replied regretfully. "They won't know anything. My father was in Africa on diplomatic extensions, with mom's friend acting as ambassador for my parents. The local government was no more than a tribal community—my parents were there because of U.S. dealings with the U.N."

"He's right," Steve agreed. "Their research results would not have been turned in to anywhere but the U.S. and…well, everything was lost in the flood anyways."

No one asked what flood he was referring to.

"So, back to square one," Robin mumbled bitterly. He closed his eyes. "We have no idea who we're dealing with, yet we need to find out. Quickly.

"Raven and Starfire, you'll begin helping Cyborg and I. I kept silent before because I was afraid this—" Robin gestured at Gar in the hospital bed. "—would happen if whoever's out there caught on to the fact that we knew something was up. Now it doesn't matter; now it's a race. We need to find this bastard before he can do anymore damage."

Opening his eyes, Robin surveyed his team before him—Cyborg frowning thoughtfully; Starfire with a worried gleam in her emerald eyes; Raven's piercing, glaring gaze fixed on someone not even in the room; Gar staring straight at _him_, determined, yet tired, and waiting expectantly. Dr. Smith had been listening to the happenings quietly, and now felt even more dead serious and deathly pale about her job. Steve still sat in the corner chair exhaustion evident in his very form, love and concern for his son written all over his face. Robin set mouth in a grim line.

"Alright. Let's do this."

* * *

_Click._

"There we go—tell me I work magic."

"You work _magic_, you friggin' pansy."

Michael sighed as he pocketed the paper clip and bobby pin he had been using to pick the lock. "_'Pansy'_…? That's what I get for being useful and productive," he drawled, swinging the door open.

Kassie grinned at the view of the hallway provided by the now-open door. "Yeah okay, sorry—you're a friggin' godsend sometimes."

"I try," Michael answered good-humoredly, following Kassie out of the room after she brushed eagerly by him. Glancing left and right to make sure no security or raging Teen Titan was going to push them back into the room, the two quickly took in their surroundings—which wasn't much. Half the lights were off in the hall, the other rooms shut tight and a lone janitor's wash bucket left against the wall. No nurses, doctors, or patients were in sight, and the hall didn't seem to be in use; abandoned and deserted.

"Guess we can't ask for directions," Michael joked. Kassie ignored him, instead peering further down the hall to find exactly what she had wanted to see—and elevator.

"C'mon," she called to Michael as she headed towards it. "We don't need 'em."

Michael frowned, and then jogged to catch up with Kassie. "Whatcha mean? This hospitals huge, no way we're gonna find—"

Kassie snorted. "Gar's in room fourteen-eighty-four by the ICU ward. We're on the…" she paused, looking at a door as they passed, "…eight-hundred floor, and the hospital goes from the bottom to the top, as most things do. We just need to head up a couple floors and make sure we're in the right wing of the hospital."

They arrived at the elevator, and Kassie punched the 'up' button. "We can find that out here."

The elevator doors opened after a few seconds with a small ding.

"C'mon." Kassie practically dragged Michael into the open elevator after her.

"Soooo…" Michael glanced at the floor buttons as the doors slid shut behind them. "How do you feel about floor number eleven?"

Kassie quickly counted in her head. "Sounds like a good choice to me," she said with a shrug. Button number eleven was punched.

Michael and Kassie glanced nervously at each other as the elevator shot upwards after the familiar slight dip, wondering if they would find Gar and if they did, what would happen when they did so. Both were burning with questions and wanted them answered. The two formed a pretty formidable team when it came to things like this, as Steve had found out, but they were still only two high school kids—and it seemed like Gar was turning out to be much more than an ordinary high school kid.

_Ding._

The elevator shuddered to a stop. "Okay," Kassie breathed. "We'll find the nearest nurse aid or whatever, pretend we're lost—"

"—which we kinda are…" Kassie glared at Michael for the interruption.

"—and ask for directions to the right hall, I guess." The elevator doors began to open. "Just act natural—we haven't done anything wrong, so—"

As the elevator doors completely opened, Kassie stared in shock at the sight that greeted her, Michael following suit.

The three Titans standing before them looked completely startled as well.

Both groups remained staring for a long second, neither quite sure what to do. Robin looked dumbfounded at the fact that Kassie and Michael, who should have been removed from the sticky situation, were standing in front of him; Cyborg recognized the two that had been outside Gar's hospital door when they had arrived and had been wondering where Raven had dumped them; Starfire didn't remember who the two were but sensed the bewilderment in the air. Michael couldn't believe they had actually nailed the correct floor with one guess; Kassie was torn between demanding what was going on, as before, and the awe at having three superheroes in front of her. When the elevator doors started to close, however, the spell broke—and quite rudely, too.

With a half-grunt, Kassie knocked the doors back and promptly smacked Robin in the face.

"I'm assuming she was following your orders," she snapped viciously as she shoved Robin aside. Robin, more stunned than he had been all day, dazedly watched her back retreat down the hallway before turning back towards Michael. Gracing the Titan leader a sympathetic wink at his reddening cheek, Michael shrugged and also moved forward.

"What you deserved, man," he sighed as he hurried past.

* * *

Gar rested his head against the headboard of his bed with a deep breath, staring at the bland, plaster-white ceiling above. His eyelids felt heavy and his limbs immobile—only moments before he had accused Dr. Smith of drugging him during the discussion with the Titans leader only to be smiled at and patted on the head. _"No drugs," _she had said, _"just a body that was still in critical conditions a few hours ago."_ She didn't mention anything about an incurable and fatal African disease, though the thought of that kind of still hung overhead as well.

"Tired?"

The soft, droning voice caused Gar to lift his head and stare at the girl sitting at the base of his bed, staring herself out the window across from her. The other Titans had left to go back to the Tower to start assignments concerning catching Gar's culprit, and Steve and Dr. Smith had stepped out of the room to talk about government stuff and available treatment for Gar—right now Raven and Gar were, once again, alone in the room. The Titans had decided to stand watch over Gar in six-hour shifts, and Raven had immediately volunteered for the first: no one had the heart to override her stubbornness on the matter, and Gar only knew Robin intended on having someone relieve her early by whispered innuendos that Raven herself might have heard. But Gar didn't really care who relieved who and when or how. For although Gar had probably hit what was considered rock-bottom by most with his life in serious danger and all, he was just short of being the happiest guy around because of two simple reasons.

One, because he hadn't lost the family of friends he thought he had lost.

And two, because of that girl sitting right over there.

Sensing Gar was watching her, and that he hadn't answered her question, Raven turned away from the window towards Gar, focusing the depths of her navy-blue depths on him. Gar nodded slowly in response. Licking his dry lips, he painfully straightened himself up more.

"Yeah, a little," he said quietly, his voice very different from the loud, happy prankster both Raven and he himself had grown used to over the years. And yet, Raven heard a satisfaction in his words that made her lips twitch to a quick smile. "Yeah, I'm a little tired."

Raven surveyed, studied Gar for a long minute, tracing his features with her firm but gentle gaze—the growing dark circles under his eyes, the fading forest-green eyes, the paling skin causing the spatter of freckles on his face to stand out even more starkly. The shaky, exhausted smile cast on his lips, the steady but nonetheless somehow weaker rise and fall of his chest. Whether her imagination was taking hold, Raven couldn't really tell—but she felt as if she were witnessing tendrils of the disease starting to spread across and through Gar's body, right before her very eyes. Her breath quickened.

"Gar," she blurted without thinking. "Are you…afraid?"

Had Gar been a little less exhausted, he may have been somewhat freaked out at the long stare Raven had just given him—but with the question, he understood. It was the look he vaguely remembered his mother giving him as a child when he was injured—when he had first gotten sick—the look Steve gave him whenever he had caught the flu or some stomach virus when he was younger; a look of concerned assessment and worry. And Gar had a pretty good idea that what Raven had seen had not been to her immediate liking or reassurance. He answered her, without thinking.

"Nah," he lied. "Not anymore."

_At least, not so much anymore._

"Not anymore," Raven echoed. She shifted her weight on the bed, leaning more towards Gar. It was nice that he had tried to fool her. Again without thinking, she asked bluntly, "How much time?"

Gar didn't answer for a second this time, leaning his head back and staring at the ceiling once more. He wasn't sure if he wanted to tell her the truth.

"Gar?"

He sighed through his nose. "The disease hasn't totally reawakened yet," he began slowly. "It's there, and it's now attacking certain parts of my system, but it's not totally there yet. That's what Dr. Smith said—but once it does…"

Silence.

"I probably have one or two days before that. First, it'll destroy my immune system. If I don't catch something after that, it'll probably be kidney or liver failure that would get me next. After that…" He paused. "Well, there isn't much after that."

Suddenly something was rattling. Gar blinked, and brought his head back down to see his I.V. hanger shaking violently, encased in black energy. But then that wasn't the only thing—the chair in the corner was suddenly rocking, too, and the trash bin by the door and the objects on the sink—Gar's breath caught in his throat. And then, just as suddenly, with a sharp pressure on his knee the all black energy was gone. Dumbstruck, Gar stared at the motionless room…and realized the sharp pressure was still there.

Raven's hand, knuckles white, was gripping Gar's knee, fingers twisted in the stark, white sheets of the bed.

Risking a glance up at Raven, Gar saw she was turned away with her other hand shielding her face from view and with her hood up in place. Her figure was shaking every so slightly. Wracking his mind for an action to take or something to say, he awkwardly stared at her hand for what seemed like an eternity. Then, Gar finally gave in and did what seemed like the right thing to do—he listened to his gut.

Leaning forward, Gar enveloped Raven's hand with his own.

She stiffened in surprise, but then relaxed—her grip loosened, and her fingers began to intertwine with Gar's—

And that was the exact moment Kassie and Michael decided to barge in.


	25. Part 3: And The Secrets Are Out

**Author's Note:** I am so evil. Just thought I'd get that out there before you guys read the last couple sentences of this chapter. Not so much that the sentences are evil, but the fact that I won't be updating until...whenever. SORRY. Yeah. In other news, I think this will be probably the fifth or fourth to last chapter—seriously. Almost there guys, and I'm not sure whether to be excited or depressed. I have decided, though, that I'm going to go through and edit all of this once I've finished; nothing major, just proof-reading better, touching it up, and removing the author notes in favor for plain notes on the chapter at the end of each chapter. Stuff like that. And I've been itching to write in a certain fandom for a very long time now and I've started working on that fic as well. More on that much later. So that second TTfanfic I was talking about? Not gonna anywhere near the horizon of my future for now. SORRY AGAIN.

Hope everyone had a happy round of holidays! On that note, talk to you later I guess. ;p

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

As the door burst open for the umpteenth time that day, Raven broke away from Gar as if his hand was white-hot, violet eyes jerking upwards and away from Gar's hands. Her heart had been hammering as she had begun to cross forbidden boundaries—and now her heart was sprinting as the door banged against the wall, Kassie stomping into the room with Michael stumbling in after. It took Raven a minute to register exactly who these people were; and as recognition dawned upon her, Kassie had enough time to pull in a deep breath.

"_Tell me what the_ HELL _is going on here!_"

Raven blinked. _Didn't I lock them in a room?_

"Kassie? Michael! What…where did you guys go?" Gar's confused voice broke through Raven's thoughts and she turned to answer him—Michael beat her to it.

"It's funny, really." Michael sauntered past Kassie up to Gar, leaning against the wall beside the bed. "Your little visitors here thought we'd be better off locked in some room on some deserted hall than here, with you. Cuz you know, it's not like we're your friends or anything."

"Is that true?" Gar's slightly annoyed face focused on Raven.

Raven shrugged, avoiding his eyes. "Robin's orders."

Michael snickered. "Yeah, he pissed off Kassie pretty bad."

"Pretty bad my ass," Kassie grumbled, crossing her arms. "I was freaking livid for a while there."

"She smacked your Robin pal for a loop," Michael whispered obviously behind his hand to Gar. "Literally. I think she left a mark."

Gar smiled and allowed himself a chuckle—he had noticed how relieved the faces of his two friends had been when they had burst in to find him alive and breathing on the bed. At his laugh, though, they noticed something was still wrong with him—mainly how the smile and laughter didn't quite reach his eyes.

Kassie walked over to the chair Steve had been sitting in earlier and plopped herself down, arms still crossed. She gazed sternly at Gar until he met her eyes.

"So," she began, "you're not from Maine, you nearly died last night, you've been in critical condition for the past fourteen hours, and you just happen to be buddy-buddy with the Teen Titans."

Gar stared at her. He laughed sheepishly. "I guess that's your way of asking for answers?"

Kassie didn't say anything, just waited.

Gar glanced nervously at Raven out of the corner of his eye, and saw she was watching him. Catching his gaze, Raven lifted her eyebrows and gave a barely perceptible, exhausted nod. _Go on_, she seemed to be saying. _They deserve it._

Gar sighed and turned back to Kassie. Michael's attention was now fully focused on Gar as well, as soon as he saw they would finally be getting what they wanted. "You're right," Gar replied wearily. "I'm not from Maine—I've actually lived here the past…six years of my life? Something like that."

Michael's eyes popped and his mouth dropped open as he leapt up from the wall. "You're _kidding_ me!"

Kassie jumped up from her seat almost simultaneously, face excited and eyes wide. "HA! See, I _knew_ it! I told you Michael!! I freaking _told_ you!!!"

Gar and Raven slowly looked at each other, both surprised by the reaction Gar's statement had brought. Clearing his throat, Gar peered cautiously at his friends. "Um…surprise?"

At his voice, Kassie marched over to the bed and gently flicked Gar on the forehead, grin on her face. "You were so obvious it was kinda cute."

Gar shook his head, not quit getting it. "What…?"

"_Dude!_ I can't believe this!" Michael rubbed a hand across his head, unbelieving and talking to no one in particular. He turned to Gar. "Can I like, get your autograph or something so I can sell it online? Oh, and you should date it—it would be even more valuable since everyone thinks you're missing—OH MY GOD, do you think I could claim reward cash or something if I 'found' you? That would take care of college for me—"

"How long have you guys known?" Raven interrupted Michael, realizing what was going on. Gar looked so lost, she felt she had to stop Michael's onslaught or he'd just zonk out.

Kassie's grin grew wider as she answered Raven's question, any previous animosity or hard feelings she might have had against the teen heroine gone. "Ah, I don't know—there were just all these little clues. I'd say it was when that tabloid came out, and when I found out he ran towards that fight instead of away from it; that's when I started thinking, 'You know, this guy ain't completely normal'."

"Tabloid?" Gar echoed.

"Yeah—you should've seen your face when you started reading it," Kassie chirped happily. She had a right to be pleased with herself. "Oh and you know," she added, addressing Raven, "it was adorable the way he got awfully flustered whenever Michael started going on about how hot the Titan chicks were. Especially you." She winked.

Raven went pale, and Gar's blush stood out vividly against his already pale skin. Kassie watched their reaction slyly, feeling even more pleased with herself.

"I can't believe you're a FREAKING SUPERHERO!" Michael burst out.

"Was," Gar muttered, blush fading—he still refused to look over at Raven.

Kassie cocked her head curiously. "Yeah, about that—why the hell are you Gar Logan and not Beast Boy? I always thought you'd be a lot greener in person…"

"Hardy-har." Gar wondered if he should really be telling them all this—he went on anyways. "It's not much of a story, really; I lost my powers. The end."

"A freaking SUPERHERO!"

Kassie ignored Michael. "Lost your powers? Doesn't that..._not_ happen everyday?"

"Okay, so it's a long story—a long, kind of complicated story," Gar admitted. "And one that I don't really wanna talk about."

"A SUPERHERO!"

Kassie raised her eyebrows. "Well, since you're in the hospital and everything, I _guess_ you could take a rain check on that one. But I will—"

"I can't BELIVE you're a FREAKING—"

"OKAY, Michael, we got the picture!" Kassie exasperatedly snapped, but not with complete malice. She rolled her eyes, and then looked over at Gar again, seriousness in her gaze. "I understand you not wanting to tell us the details…but…"

She rose from the chair and walked over to the bed, eyes gentle as she placed a hand on Gar's shoulder and gave a slight, reassuring squeeze. "Whether you're the 'missing green teen hero' or not, know that you _still_ are our friend and we _will_ be there for you if you need us."

"Yeah, you can count on us, buddy!" Michael gave a ridiculous thumbs-up from the foot of the bed.

Gar smiled, not knowing quite what to say. "Thanks, guys."

"No problem," Kassie replied, both she and Michael smiling back. "No problem."

"...So since we're your buddies and all, can I take a ride in the T-car?"

"_MICHAEL!!_"

* * *

It watched.

From its perch on a neighboring building, it could see into the window through the open shades perfectly; it could see the individual shapes moving around inside, and the mechanics of its electronic visor only enhanced and sharpened the image so it could see the individual people moving around inside. The two annoying females joking and laughing, attempting to lighten the mood, pestering the male about light-hearted things as he played along. The brooding one in the corner, letting a smile grace her lips every once and while at the antics of the others. And then, sitting up in the bed, its target, rubbing the back of his head and grinning every once and a while, laughing at the others—his face was more gaunt, definitely more sunken since the last time it had seen him. It knew its mistress would have been giddy at the success her plan was taking on: but it had its orders, and it wouldn't report back to the mistress until later, much later. Later when no one was watching, in that one split second when the figures turned their backs and let their guards down, in that one moment they would regret, that's when it would report—that's when it would do its duty.

To please its mistress.

So it watched.

And it waited.

* * *

"Well, I guess it's about time we headed out," Michael commented, glancing at his wristwatch. "We gotta go help the band set up for their gig tonight."

"I _still_ can't believe I'm missing that," Gar sighed. It was the truth, too—just last week when he had found out about a local gig the guys had gotten booked and he had a free ticket to the show, he had been ecstatic. But trust him, of all people, to come down with an incurable, fatal African disease when he was looking forward to having some normal fun-time with his normal, high school friends. Yeah...

"Pshhht, don't fret yourself over it, they'll probably blow it anyways and then be by here sometime around one in the morning to gloat about it," Kassie rolled her eyes, and earned a giggle from Starfire.

"Yes, do not fret, friend Beast Boy," Starfire echoed cheerfully from behind Kassie, clapping her hands together. "Human males do love to gloat!"

Kassie snickered at the twitching looks both Michael and Gar sent Starfire's way, and Raven also looked on with a slight smirk on her face. When Starfire had arrived a few hours ago—about an hour after lunch, actually—to relieve Raven of her guarding duties, the two girls had gotten along very quickly and quite well. That is, Starfire thought everything Kassie said was either funny or clever and ended up laughing at or repeating it while Kassie basked in the glory and awe she was receiving from the alien teen superhero. Michael had been quite put off when his "favorite" Titan had ended up laughing at Kassie's jokes, which usually he was the blunt end of. Gar had been surprised that Starfire seemed to understand the concept of sarcasm when it came to Kassie, but after some time had accepted that living with Raven and Robin must had finally started rubbing off on her.

"Anyways," Michael said, gesturing at his watch again. "Like I said, Kassie and I better get going. And she's right the guys probably will wanna stop in and see how you're doing at some point—they already know you're in the hospital," Michael interrupted himself, seeing the question in Gar's eyes, "cuz Kassie told Benji earlier this morning when he called to find out where she was. We told him you had an accident."

"Yeah," Kassie confirmed with a nod. Then she turned to Raven. "And before you ask, no, we won't let them come at one in the morning—that was a joke. They might wanna come by tomorrow though, okay?"

Raven looked so abashed for a second, Gar wondered if she really had been planning to ask. Kassie just winked.

"Right," Raven spoke for the first time in the past hour or so, straightening up where she had been leaning against the window sill. "I guess I better get going too...but—" She hesitated for a split second. "Before I go, Starfire—I'd like to...have a word with Gar alone for a minute?"

Starfire beamed. "Of course, friend Raven! Come, friends Kassie and Michael, I will off to see you!"

"See us off?"

Starfire frowned at Michael as she ushered him out the door. "Why would I want to see friends Kassie and Michael turned off?"

Kassie laughed, grinned mischievously at Gar, and then the door was shut.

And he was alone with Raven.

And she was alone with him.

Again.

Gar swallowed, feeling his throat itch, and wondered what to say to her to break the silence that was growing between them. He looked up to speak to her, expecting her to still be on the other side of the room...to find a pair of navy eyes not five inches from his face, her weight sinking the left side of the bed down ever-so-slightly.

...Whoa.

"Gar," Raven started rather abruptly, looking firmly into his startled but curious forest green eyes—she had been rehearsing this for the past hour, and knew exactly what she was going to say. Yet, she still found herself distracted if only a little by just how vivid the green of his eyes were in comparison to the rest of his face, which she swore had gotten even more paler—_too_ pale—over the course of the day, and the ever-darkening circles around those eyes, which she swore hadn't been as deep this morning...she quickly shook her head a tad to rid herself of the thoughts.

"Gar," she began again, "I want...to ask you something—and it's okay if you don't want to do it, but I feel it's for the best."

Gar's heart hammered slightly in his chest as she leaned in with her words, and though her tone was monotone as usual, he could still sense the earnestness she was more or less radiating. What was she talking about...?

"I want to establish a link with you."

"...Er—what?

Raven knew she would have to explain. "A telepathic link. With you. That way...I'll know if something happens. Immediately."

Gar stared at her blankly.

"I have one with Robin, and we can communicate with our minds when we need to—it takes tremendous strain to do so, of course, so that's pretty much all we can do. And the link is never always open, only when we need it to be. But mainly, it will let me know if something happens and where...where I can find you."

Gar studied Raven's carefully stoic face. _A telepathic link?_ She blinked, and Gar thought he saw something like anxiousness flash through her eyes. _Hm, well, what the hell, why not?_

"Yeah, why not?" Gar repeated his thoughts aloud, faint but sincere smile on his face. He almost heard Raven's relief in her quick exhale of breath at his answer. "How do we do it?"

"That's why I needed to ask you beforehand," Raven replied conversationally, looking down at her lap. Gar raised an eyebrow. Raven didn't do "conversationally".

"I establish the link by going into your mind—seeing into your mind."

Gar's smile faded. "My...mind?"

Raven nodded cautiously. She had seen the doubt leap into Gar's eyes at those words; she had kind of been expecting it.

"Like...reading my mind?"

"Not really reading—just seeing. I won't be able to read your thoughts unless you direct them at me, but I will end up seeing some of your memories."

Gar almost didn't respond to Raven's words for a minute—his_mind?_ That was...he wasn't sure he wanted her to do that. But then—it was _Raven_. He...he trusted her.

Yeah. He trusted her.

"Yeah. I trust you."

Gar found the words coming out of his mouth before he knew what he was doing. Raven's eyes widened somewhat, taken aback by the readiness and fortitude in his reply.

"You...what?"

"I trust you."

There it was again. An open, clear, and strong sincerity in those three words. Raven's expression reverted from startled back to her usual unreadable one, but her insides more or less melted at his words.

"Okay then."

It was Gar's turn to be startled when Raven shifted fully onto the bed to face him directly and sit Indian-style by him. He started to scoot over a bit to give her unneeded room—the hospital bed was more than wide enough for both of them—when he was halted by a soft, gentle hand brushing across his forehead as it came to rest at his right temple. Raven's other hand rested lightly on his left temple. He locked gazes with her quickly, question in his eyes, but she just gifted him with a tiny smile.

"Relax, now. And if you feel me, don't try to push me away—just let me in."

Gar returned her small smile with one of his own, not quite understanding what she meant by the second half of her instructions. He closed his eyes as she shut hers, and he heard the mutterings of her incantation begin. _Feel her?_ he wondered into the darkness of his eyelids. _Wonder what she means by—_

And then there it was. He _felt_ it—well, her, rather. A faint tug at his conscious. At first he nearly panicked, jerking away from the feeling; but a comforting brush from dainty fingers on his temples and then another, persistent yet _gentle_ tug, and he remembered—Raven was gentle, everything about her. It was her. The tug became more of a caress, and he gave in, letting her through, letting her in.

As had happened at first with Robin, and as she expected, Gar at first backed away from her intrusion into his consciousness; but he had recognized her and let her in much quicker than Robin had, or she had expected, and that surprised her to immobility for a moment. Then, she began the work of memorizing the patterns and lengths of his mind to establish the link—and the memories came. There was nothing she could do to stop them, being in another person's mind and all, so she let them wash over her and engulf her as needed while she continued her work. What she didn't bargain on, however, was the intensity with which the memories did come.

_Pain. _

_PAIN. It flooded through her and blinded her to the world, to the worried cries and angry shouts around her, making her only aware of the liquid agony spreading through her limbs, and everything was green and hot, green and hot— _

_Falling, falling, a man and a woman—she couldn't see their faces, but, no, she cared for them, she did—mom...mom and dad! They were falling, falling! She reached towards their loving eyes and outstretched arms, but they were falling, FALLING! Too fast, FAST! NO! DON'T FALL!! DON'T LEAVE ME—!_

"_Freak."_

_It hurt._

_Pain, but different, this time. Freak. Dork. Trouble. Weirdo. All directed at her. No one wanted her, no one knew her. All disregarding eyes. All alone? Yes...she was alone..._

_This was a strange feeling. What was this? Laughing, laughing and smiling hesitantly with a kind man, big but kind, brown eyes warm and accepting. Happiness! The pen scrolling his signature out on the foster care papers, and he was his for the time being! But how long would that last...?_

_Overwhelming happiness. Looking around at the empty, new room, but the room that was nonetheless hers at the Tower. The sliding doors opened, revealing Robin and Cyborg, asking if she wanted to go get pizza before moving in—_

_The new alien girl and a cloaked figure were sitting in the kitchen with her and the guys, Robin firing questions at them, Cyborg listening to the interview intently. She was moving around in her seat, trying to get a glimpse of the cloaked figure's face. She couldn't see into the shadows, but that just piqued her curiosity—_

_Out on the roof with the mysterious cloaked girl—she had a face! The beginnings of sunlight glanced off her violet hair, making it shimmer in the dawn. Her pale face had a glow, an almost heavenly sheen to it—so beautiful—and those deep eyes—why hiding in a cloak? Why? Frustration. Why wouldn't she talk to her, let her in? She wanted to help. She wanted to help—_

_Blonde, louder, laughter, bright blues eyes—eyes that turned to hard, cold ice—mirrors, mirrors everywhere—shattering, shattering into a million pieces like her heart, cutting, CUTTING! Pain again, everywhere. NOT AGAIN. Why? Why—?!_

_Healing—trying so hard, so hard. But someone was there for her, she was being supported...cloak? Long cloak? But she never let her in before. But no questions, just gratitude..._

_Overwhelming pride, seeing the team lined up beside her. Everyone was there, determined, flawless teamwork, helping and supporting hands. Fighting together, defending—pure happiness, contentment—_

_Loss. Confusion and betrayal again whittled away at her insides. No use asking why now. Was used to it...she thought. But she can't help but think—why? Why now, why again? Nothing right. Loss, confusion. She missed...she missed them. But one in particular. She didn't feel whole. At loss. LOST. She was aching inside. Trying so hard, but so LOST. Help, help me. I'm hurting, I'm aching. Moving on, trying to. Someone. Her. She could help. Why didn't she...? Help me. SOMEONE HELP—_

And the link was set.

"Raven?"

Raven felt confused for a moment, as she always did after delving that deep. Where was she again?

"...Rae?"

Ah. Right.

_That was...?_

"Rae? Rae!"

Her eyes snapped open at Gar's worried calls, and she was met with the sight of an anxious yet exhausting looking Gar. Blinking, she lowered her hands from his head, taking in and adjusting to the world around her once more. After a minute, she faced Gar squarely—he was still watching her, eyes searching and wary. She gave a hesitant twitch of her lip.

"Alright. It's all set."

"...You're okay?"

"Yes. Are you okay?"

"...Yeah."

Silence.

Raven was assessing him again. Not with worried, concerned eyes like she had earlier in the morning, but rather with a thoughtful, analyzing gaze. He held still, as if any movement would disturb her concentration. He wondered exactly what she had seen inside his head...he gulped and felt his face heat at all the things she_could've_ seen in his head.

Then, without warning and very suddenly, Raven rose from the bed. About to put her hood up again, she paused, and instead looked back down at Gar. His breath hitched in his throat and his heart leaped in his chest as she tenderly reached her hand out and lightly cupped his cheek, offering him a tentative but genuine smile. In her eyes, Gar noticed, something else flashed for hardly a second—guilt...?

"I'm...glad you're okay."

And then her hood was up, and she was gone.

* * *

Cyborg rubbed his human eye blearily, attempting to swat the blurriness away as he stared at the large monitor in front of him. Its dim blue glow lit his workshop and cast flickering shadows across the wall as he stared at the screen intently, completely focused in his work. He hadn't realized dark had fallen outside and he had been working straight for the past ten hours since the Titans had left the hospital, too engrossed with sorting through the data collections, too involved in searching for the telltale glitch in the system that would give the trail of the hacker away. For an amateur, rummaging through the monster computer that basically ran the Tower would be deemed impossible—but Cyborg was far from any amateur when it came to these types of things, and throughout the past ten hours had begun to come agonizingly close to some leads. But whoever had tried to do this, whoever had done this...

They were just too damn _good_.

From the start, Cyborg had expected the original hacker-trail left had been a fake, too sloppy for someone attempting to actually hack into the Tower's mainframe system. Nobody with an actual brain for hacking would leave such an obvious trail, and anyone stupid enough to leave such an obvious trial wouldn't have the reasons to try to hack into the Tower in the first place; they'd be doing something stupid and novice like hacking into a bank's or a museum's mainframe to steal a priceless artifact or something. Cyborg's suspicion had only been confirmed and heightened when the trail lead to a dead end—and it had been a literal dead end. Not leading even to some computer geek's PC, let alone some elite hacker's: it just stopped. He had wasted a couple hours following the trail, which often times varied between blatantly obvious to painfully complicated, and because of that the whole time Cyborg hadn't known the true caliber of what he was dealing with.

But when it just stopped like that, like disappearing into thin cyberspace...it was unreal. Always, _always_ there was some sort of trail—numbers didn't simply add up to nothing, you know?

Cyborg was spooked. There was no telling what they'd been able to get at in the Tower's system if they had been able to do that.

And so now here he was, scanning every freaking thing he could because he didn't have much else to go on. He was finding himself getting weary, tired. While the computer part of his mind was having no problem keeping up, he was still human—and that part couldn't keep up with the monotony for much longer.

"Doing okay?"

Cyborg nearly jumped at the sound of Robin's voice, and tiredly turned to glance at the team leader currently using one of the numerous computers in Cyborg's workshop to sift through any leads on Beast Boy's would-be personal stalker, or villain, depending on how you looked at it. He had nearly forgotten the Boy Wonder was there—the guy had a knack for fading into the background, which Cyborg suspected he'd picked up from his infamous mentor.

"Yeah, I guess," Cyborg sighed heavily. Robin merely nodded absently, immersed in his own work. Both of the boys fell silent.

Turning back to his monitor, Cyborg forced himself to glare a hole through it as he continued tracked the scan. He refocused his concentration, his computer mind analyzing the results at lightening speeds. Despite his efforts, however, it wasn't long before he found himself daydreaming about a BLT with his name on it waiting in the fridge. _Cyborg, man,_ he chided himself, sitting up and slapping his cheek. _Snap outta it! Just keep going! You're already...one...eighth...through the...system—my GOD this is gonna be a looooong night._

From his end of the room, Robin frowned at his monitor screen as he scrolled through confidential files of past student-researchers and faculty at Myer University. He had been able to narrow down the selection to those who had happened to work with or come into contact with Dr. Mark Logan during his graduate program research at the university. Robin had learned to flick past faces and names, instead focusing on the departments each had worked in—any similar to Dr. Logan's he clicked on for elaboration. After discarding yet another possible prospect, Robin's frown deepened as he clicked back through the archives...

Then—_there_. Another, and this time...a graduate student as well? Robin started—and in the same department as Dr. Logan had been, not to mention under the _same research project._..! Robin glanced at the face and name: long, midnight-black hair, tanned face, sweetly smiling face, called..."_Ragonu"_? Interesting—he clicked eagerly, scanning the details, eyes settling on a scanning of two newspaper clips. The first read "_Tragedy Strikes—Student Injured In Lab Accident" _and the second—the second...

"_Suicide Case; Top Graduate Student Found Hanging"_.

Oh.

Robin sighed through his nose, and clicked away.

* * *

_Now._

Slip down the rope silently, fly, avoid the lights; snaking, lithely slithering up the wall with both natural and practiced silent stealth. Hook back up, silently tether in. Tap lightly on the window. Freeze. _Click_. Creak open the window and crawl inside in one fluid motion, silently shutting it barely a breadth behind. Creep up the wall, silently watch the still figures in the room—one snoring lightly, leaning against the wall, splayed out in a chair. The other—yes, that one—hungrily watch the sheets rise and fall gently and tremulously. Drop from the wall, scurry forward silently, then slink—lurk by the pillow, arms reaching forward cautiously yet eagerly, it's the prey, _almost there_—

A snort. Shifting, muttering. Pull back—then, nothing. Relax. Next on guard again, refocus: yes, its mistress will be pleased, so pleased...

Gar jerked awake in a half-panic, feeling a death-cold grip on his mouth, keeping him from crying out, then the same crushing grasp around his arms and ribs, ripping him silently from the bed, cold pressed against him, all around him, then a sharp prick on his neck, then—

_Nothing._

Starfire shifted in her chair a bit, snuggling closer to herself, completely oblivious to the tousled, empty bed and the open window swinging lightly, silently in the night breeze.


	26. Flashback 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

_ "What?"_

_ "I said, he's gone—left for __Boston__ with his girlfriend, that redhead. He's trying to get a grant from the committee so he can travel to __Africa__ in a couple years. Work on that insane, pet project of his. Anyways, he said to give you his regards..."_

_ She couldn't believe it. _

_Boston__?_

_ Girlfriend?_

_ She...she had thought..._

_ "...left this—hey, are you listening? He left this 'Get-Well' card and number so you could reach him if you wanted to. Uh...Melina? You okay? Look kinda dazed..."_

_ She blinked, then smiled carefully up at a concerned Ryan Delver._

_ "I'm fine."_

_ Ryan stared at her a moment longer, then sighed. Checked his watch. "Well, okay. I have to go now, got a meeting with my team's sponsor that I can't miss—I'll come back by later, though, and check up on you, okay? And your parents said they'd be by again around dinnertime, okay?"_

_ His voice sounded so far away..._

_ "Right. Thanks for dropping by, Ryan, I know it must be a hassle..."_

_ "Nah, it's no problem, Mel—" He was opening the door, walking out. "We've all been worried about you down at the lab, it's great to have you back."_

_ "...Yes. Thank you."_

_ "See you later, Mel."_

_ The door clicked shut._

_ She continued staring, eyes empty and fake smile plastered on her face. _

_ After a while, the corners of her mouth began to fall. The _plop plop_ of the IV drip sounded extremely loud in the silent hospital room. The fluorescent light flickered overhead._

_ "__Africa__."_

_ Sheets rustled, and she buried her face in her arms._

_ "_Africa_...!"_

_ A purple envelope with a "Get-Well!" card inside remained untouched on the bedside table._

* * *

_ Melina Ragonu tapped her forehead with a pencil as she worked on the Sudoku puzzle in her lab, ignoring the bustling crowds and rushing cars passing her outside café table. A cup of coffee sat forgotten on the green wicker metal, no longer steaming._

_ Seven months._

_ It had been seven months since she'd woken from her three-month long coma; two months since she'd been released from rehab. One month since she'd bought her own one-bedroom, two-bath, one kitchen and living room condo in __Chicago__. Only twenty minutes by subway from the Myler Labs extension in the city. She would start working with an old friend and professor from the university in a week and a half._

_ Mark Logan was leaving for his honeymoon in Nice tomorrow._

_ The lead tip of her pencil broke when she pushed down too forcefully as she wrote a '_5_' in one of the small, numerous boxes._

_ She chuckled._

_ In five days it would be the anniversary of the accident._

_ The accident that burned the left side of her body, leaving horrible scars on her left hip and lower abdomen from the glass and metal that had dug into her left kidney and spleen. The accident that had fractured her right thigh in seven places and snapped her right ankle, after it had blown her over three lab tables, through a cupboard of stacked beakers and into a wall. The accident that had given her a severe concussion and three misaligned vertebrae. The accident that had torn her from consciousness and the world for three long, miserable months. The accident that had turned her body and muscles into those equivalent of a child from lack of use. The accident that ruined her relationship with Mark._

_ The accident that ruined her._

_ "He just doesn't know how to confront you. He feels so utterly responsible and guilty."_

_ "Just give him time. He'll come around."_

_ "I'm sure he misses you. He just doesn't know how to face you."_

_ "He's buried himself in his work. Maybe a call from you would help...?"_

_ He visited her once—when she woke up. He stayed for forty-five minutes._

_ "Mel, I'm so sorry—I just—"_

_ Sobbing. Weeping, hysterical._

_ "I got away with a burned arm and a broken knee. But you—you..."_

_ "It's my fault you're like this. If I had just stopped like you had told me to—"_

_ Calming down. Sense returning._

_ "I kept researching, because I owed it to you—"_

_ "...A grant. They're offering me it if I can prove the merit—"_

_ BUT._

_ "I can't work with you anymore, Mel. I'm working alone, now."_

_ "What if something happened like this again! I couldn't forgive myself! I still can't forgive myself—!"_

_ "I'm sorry, Mel..."_

_AND__ THEN._

_ "Marie, this is Melina. Mel, this is Mary. I wanted you to meet her..."_

_ BASTARD._

_ She...she had thought..._

* * *

Melina Ragonu had a feverish light in her eyes as she stared at the prize her pet presented her with—so sought after, now finally mere inches away from her.

She reached out a shaking hand, frightening grin on her face, showing all her teeth between her full, lipstick-red lips. She took a sheet-white finger and traced it down a freckled nose, over two dry, cracking lips, down a lily-white, exposed neck. She paused, finger hovering, and then pushed aside the slightly-sullied hospital gown. She pressed her palm into the soft, goosebumped flesh of the chest, tracing a pink, raised nipple with the tip of a nail. Her hand slid down over the carved muscles of the navel, following a trail of light fuzz that led down, down—she halted, lifting her hand with a quiet hiss. Her lips her curving upwards, upwards—she marveled at the shape of his body as it rose and fell steadily, in time with the flutter of his breaths. She moved in again, quickly rubbing places sensitive and forbidden, kissing delicately tips of eyelashes and ears. Licking, biting and sucking that lily-white neck, that gorgeous chest. He was _hers_.

With a short bark of laughter at that thought, she pulled away, knowing she couldn't get carried away yet. The sedative would be wearing off soon. There would be time later. But for now...hungry eyes travelled over the unconscious form being held up by her pet.

"He's beautiful—just like his father. Except for that hair."

She turned briskly, beckoning her pet with a finger.

_That awful, hideous hair._


	27. Finale: Things As Planned

**Author's Note:** OH. MY. GAWD. I DID IT. I FREAKING GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL!! Not that I didn't think I would, but--IT'S FINALLY OVER! Now on to the world! And due to my awesomely ecstatic mood that has remained unsullied and increasingly ecstatic for the past two weeks that I've been GRADUATED, I give you the second-to-last chapter of _Life With No Green_. I'm going river-rafting this weekend, but by this time next week, I daresay you guys will be blessed with the last chapter (of epic length, though, I'm starting to think), and maybe a couple days later the epilogue. It's about time we get down to business on finishing this up, right? This may be an incredible and stunning piece of work (haha I know, but I've gotten a big head from your reviews :D) but all good things must come to an end and I'm ready to move on to new beginnings on new stories and maybe in new fandoms...SO ON TOWARDS THE SUNSET!!

...Yes, I'm enthusiastic and overly-excited. Sorry. BUT CAN YOU BLAME ME?! :DDDDDDDDD

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

Kid Flash peered around Raven's shoulder, watching Robin pour a glass of water.

"Are you two _serious_?"

They didn't say anything.

"_Why_ didn't I know about this sooner?!"

Raven nearly growled. "We had no need to tell you."

"Raven," Robin warned as he leaned against the kitchen counter. He looked at Kid Flash's unbelieving face. "We're sorry we didn't let you know sooner, but at first it didn't concern you and then we just got too busy. But we could really use your help now, if you don't mind."

Kid Flash gaped.

Twenty-two minutes ago, Raven had found him snooping around outside Cyborg's workshop—and then had been bombarded with questions concerning "just-where-the-hell-everyone-had-disappeared-to". Robin chose to step out of Cyborg's workshop for a break right about then, and found himself confronted in the same peeved manner.

Frankly, the Titans had pretty much forgotten about the fact that Kid Flash was out of the loop.

And so, after explaining where exactly the "missing" teen hero Beast Boy had gone, and realizing Raven hadn't gotten any sleep yet, he and Cyborg were apparently no where close to getting any leads, and Starfire would be returning from her shift watching Beast Boy soon, Robin decided Kid Flash would take the next shift. Without refusal.

Kid Flash, though, seemed to have some differing ideas about the subject.

"I thought I was a member of this team! But _you_ guys apparently don't think so! So why the _hell_ should I take orders from you?!" He crossed his arms, taking a step or two back and glaring angrily at the two Titans in front of him.

"You were accepted onto this team only because circumstances called for it!" Raven practically spat. "We had no need to involve you in our personal matters, and there's no need for you to get so worked up about it."

"Raven," Robin warned again, watching Raven and Kid Flash closely. He knew there had always been tension between them, and it seemed to be escalating frightfully fast at the moment.

Kid Flash laughed harshly. "For me to get worked up about it?!"

Robin set his glass of water down, deciding to interrupt. "Kid Flash, I'm truly sorry we left you out of this, we didn't mean for you to be excluded as a member of the team—"

"Yeah, well, not _all_ of you," Kid Flash snorted, glancing at Raven. Her eyes flashed.

Robin ignored his comment. "—and since you _are_ a member of this team right now, I would really appreciate it if you helped us out. As a comrade, as a friend—there's a kid we all think of as family dying right now, and you can help us save him. And even though you've only been with us for a short while, we think of you as family now too and would go to these lengths to help you as well. So please."

Kid Flash frowned, but let his hands drop to his hips. "You put it that way and make me seem like a bad guy. I'll help for the kid's sake, but...you all sure haven't made me feel like part of the family, keeping me in the dark about all of this. I expect you to answer for that later on."

Robin sighed, and nodded. "I understand. But thanks."

"Hmph," was all Kid Flash replied with.

"Well—now that that's settled—"

All three of the Titans swerved around to see Cyborg standing at the top of the stairs, grin on his face. None of them had noticed he came in.

"Cyborg...?" Robin said.

The half-robot's grin widened. "You'll love this Robin—I got a lead."

Robin and Raven immediately perked up, eyes widening.

"What is it?!" Robin exclaimed. Kid Flash looked lost.

Cyborg chuckled. "Whoever it was, they finally screwed up in their calculations—I noticed a false trail that couldn't logically or possibly connect with the rest of the patterns. Lead to a factor that in turn leads straight to the culprit's hardware signature."

Excitement at the catch rose in Robin. "Then that means—"

It was then that several things decided to happen all at once.

Before Robin could finish his sentence, Starfire burst in through the doors that lead from the main corridor of the Tower, panic in her eyes and a frantic air about her. "Friends! Robin! Something terrible has happened!"

Ice trickled down Raven's spine.

"Friend Beast Boy! He is gone!"

Barely had the words left her mouth when a distant explosion rocked the Tower, and the Tower's alarm began screaming as the room the Titans were flashed red. Just as suddenly, the room exploded with glass as the huge window that overlooked the bay shattered, raining down on the stunned Titans as they hit the floor. Dust and wind filled the room as a familiar, dreaded voice suddenly echoed against the walls, making Robin's heart turn cold.

"How nice to see you again, Titans—Robin. I _did_ miss you _so_ while I was away."

* * *

Everything was unbelievably _cold_.

That was the first thought that hazily ran through Gar's head as he slowly drifted back to consciousness. There was a distant, constant pulsing at the back of his head, which he somehow instinctively knew was going to be one whopper of a headache when he was totally awake. As he slowly realized he was waking up, he also realized he couldn't feel the tips of his fingers or toes all that well—or his nose. A dim light attempted to bleed past his closed eyelids. His throat felt scratchy and dry. He seemed to be sitting up, as a deathly-cold, hard _something_ was pressing against his shoulder-blades and spine. Goosebumps erupted all over his body in waves as different limbs and muscles shivered uncontrollably and involuntarily, bare skin of his legs resting on what felt like a distinctively metal floor. Cold, of course...

Wait...bare...?

With a quiet moan, Gar struggled to lift his head off of his left shoulder and inched his eyelids open. His tongue felt fuzzy, and thick. The pangs in the back of his head grew more intense. As he opened his eyes all the way, first everything was incredibly bright, then incredibly dark—he blinked, eyes adjusting to the dim, yellow light hanging over him, illuminating his spot on the floor a couple of feet in every direction; beyond that bubble of light, all was dark. Gar blinked again, pulling his thoughts and head together—everything seemed so misty, filled with a fog he couldn't quite shake—again, he blinked, harder this time, trying to blink away the grogginess and haziness. He attempted to focus on the silver-metal floor between his white thighs, thinking that focusing on one thing would bring some order to his scattered brain—

White. White thighs...?

Suddenly, Gar didn't have a problem focusing anymore.

With a sharp intake of breath, Gar weakly sat up straight, taking in the fact that he seemed to be stark-naked, with wrists bound behind his back and secured to the metal pole he was currently leaning against.

_Now THIS is one of those situations I would've never thought I'd be in..._

Teeth chattering, but now more or less awake—he was still having trouble thinking straight—Gar glanced around with what he imagined was an undoubtedly beet-red face as he quickly clamped his legs together, knees up, hiding his...boyhood...from any stray and unwanted eyes that could be hiding in the shadows. _Where the hell am I?_ Gar wondered as he jiggled his wrists up and down a bit, testing the bindings—the chain links rattled against the metal pole. And then, he remembered—waking up in the hospital bed, in the pitch black night, feeling uneasy, then all of a sudden being grabbed, hands clamping down, holding him, then a prick, then—well, then he was here.

So great. Now in addition to a fatal African disease killing him second by second, he was kidnapped and without any _clothes_? When had he said he'd hit rock bottom? Because this was certainly a new low. Dare he ask if things could get any worse?

His cheek itched. With a sigh, Gar rubbed it against one of his shoulders, wondering when whoever had done this would show their face—wait, his skin was rough...? He looked down out of the corner of his eye. Funny, he didn't remember having a scab there...

That's when he noticed the faint bite-marks outlining it...and the fact that there seemed to be another on his bicep...and oh, look, _another_ on his chest...and then another down near—

Gar's eyes bugged. Now that was just going a little too _far_!

"_Fuck_," he whispered ferociously, jumping a bit when his voice still echoed around. Any given day he'd love to be victim to hickie-attacks, but he preferred to know who was doing the hicky-ing and being _conscious_ for the ordeal...

He wondered if he could add molestation to his list of recent mishaps...

A quiet, quick clinking broke into Gar's thoughts, causing him to freeze and strain his ears for any other whispers of sound. But as soon as he concentrated, the noise stopped. Gar stayed completely still for a good couple of moments of complete silence. Maybe it had been his imagination? Gar closed his eyes and leaned his head back on the pole behind him, sighing quietly. Well. What was he supposed to do now? Then—_there it was again!_

Gar jerked forward and snapped open is eyes to come face-to-face with a black, shining helmet barely a centimeter from his nose.

Everything was motionless and surprised for three seconds

And then Gar screamed.

"GYAAAAH!"

Attempting to scramble back and away from the black figure crouching in front of him, Gar merely found his entire spine pressed harshly against the pole as the chains around his wrists clicked and his feet uselessly slid and slipped against the polished steel floor. The figure didn't do anything, just watched Gar panic with a cocked head. Eyes wide and chest heaving, Gar watched the crouched figure carefully, and began to regain his composure a bit when the figure made no sudden moves to decapitate him or whatever. And that's also when a coughing fit decided to kick in.

The hacking was tortuous, and Gar found himself leaning towards the figure with his coughs instead the preferred keeping as far away as possible—but the figure remained as it was, just cocking its head even further to the side. Then, over his trembling chest and rumbling coughs, Gar heard a silky, husky voice that sent chills throughout his body.

"So he's finally awake, my pet? But you mustn't upset him so..."

Gar tried to stifle his coughing and watched as a long, black leather stiletto boot emerged from the shadows, followed by the swish of a lab coat and a cascade of curly, midnight-black hair. Gar briefly wondered how he had missed the distinct click of those boots approaching. Blood-red lips curved upwards wickedly at him, as the tall, full-busted figure sauntered forward, and a steel-cold, glinting hazel gaze focused on him.

"...after all, he is on the brink of death, I suppose."

Three thoughts ran through Gar's head at the sight of the woman bending over him.

One: good _god_ she was hot.

Two: why did she look familiar?

Three: who the hell _was_ she and why was she staring so _creepily_ at him?

The coughing finally subsided with a last, undignified and disgusting-sounding hack on Gar's part and he was able to breathlessly relay this last thought to the woman. Well, the first part of it anyway.

"Who the hell are you?"

The woman's smile widened and she clicked her tongue—"Tsk, tsk, Logan, you must watch your mouth, it's rude to use bad language."

Gar stared at her.

She bent closer to him, leering, black curls falling around her face. "You do, by the way, have a rather deliciously-enticing moan when touched in the right places, my dear boy—that should come out of your mouth more often, in my opinion."

Gar's face shone a deep red as he sputtered, leaning away from the woman. "W-what the _hell_?! Who are—"

She threw back her head as she shrieked in laughter, causing Gar to jump and rattle the chains against the pole. Still chuckling, she looked back at Gar and placed one stiletto boot on one side of his shivering figure and another on his other side before settling down and straddling Gar. He felt his face heat up exponentially as she pressed her pelvis and inner thighs against his hips and stomach, stroking a neatly red-painted fingernail against his chest as she leaned forward. Gar gulped as he leaned backwards.

"You don't know who I am? I'm hurt, Logan." She leaned further in and her lips brushed his right ear. "I would've thought your father would have at least mentioned Melina Ragonu..."

Gar started, and the woman—Ragonu—leaned back to observe Gar's stunned face with a taunting grin.

"...You—you knew my father?"

Ragonu laughed again, and enveloped Gar in her arms so his face conveniently into her bust—she grinned wider as he attempted to lean away from her forced embrace. "Knew? Oh, Logan, I knew you—every inch of your mind, your soul, your body..."

_What? _

Gar's face flushed yet again as Ragonu started grinding herself against him, making no effort at being subtle at all. Oh-kay, he decided it was time for her to get _off_...

"Ah, what's this?" Ragonu purred. "Struggling? But we're having so much fun, Logan!" She licked the side of his face.

"Ah-AUGH! Gross!"

Ragonu chuckled—and rather evilly; Gar was beginning to think she might not be mentally stable.

"I've been looking forward to meeting you face-to-face, Logan, ever since the day I saw you—found you. I've been watching you, you know—following you. To think you finally returned from Africa! And left that dreadful Marie behind, too!"

Gar froze at the sound of his mother's name.

Ragonu's eyes narrowed and she smiled a very feline-like smile at Gar's halt in movement. She leaned forward to whisper in Gar's ear again. "You know," her voice was low, and husky, "I knew who you wanted all along, Logan. I knew you really wanted me. Because I've _always_ loved you."

Gar blinked. _Whaaaaaaaaaaat__?_

Suddenly something wet and warm was on the side of his neck, sucking—hands gripped him, sliding and caressing fiercely, cool to the touch but erupting flames where they touched. Gar sat there, stunned, body shaking, _freezing_, and yet so feverishly hot, as the wetness worked its way down his neck, down his chest, onto his stomach, sending shivers down his spine and across his body. And it kept traveling, kept moving downward until—

_That's ENOUGH._

In no time a sharp crack sounded and Ragonu was thrown away from Gar as his knee connected solidly with her jaw. Before she could catch herself Gar let loose another well-aimed, forceful kick at her side which sent her rolling a few paces across the floor. He hadn't been a superhero for nothing, you know. Gar's face was grim and determined as his leg shot forward to strike again—this time, however, Ragonu was ready. She scrambled out of the way and managed to catch Gar's kick between the floor and one of her stiletto boots.

Ragonu glared down at Gar as she dug her boot into his shin, earning a grimace from Gar. Her jaw was already swelling and darkening where he had hit it. Black locks fell messily over her face, misplaced and frazzled from the brief beating.

"You little _bastard_...you dare hit _me_?"

Ice ran down Gar's spine at the feral, growling undertones in her voice.

"I offer you love—and you reject me again, Logan. I give you _everything_, and you always reject me," Ragonu hissed. "It's that damn bitch! It has to be!"

Gar gaped, unsure of how to react.

"I've always loved you, yet you chose her...I've always—ALWAYS!" Ragonu roared, advancing towards Gar.

Gar's eyes widened as she drew back a stiletto boot, heel aimed at his ribs.

This woman was _insane_!

* * *

"Raven! Watch OUT!"

With a giant gust of wind and a swirl of dust, a huge chunk of the Titan Tower flew through the air where Raven had been only moments before, generously thrown by a monstrously raging Cinderblock. In what used to be the left side of he Tower's living room, Cyborg dodged a pile of acidic muck thrown by a monstrously raging Plasmus, barely managing to not let it burn through his head as he had been distracted by his warning yell towards Raven who was levitating a few meters away.

It was a fierce battle that at the moment encompassed most of the middle floors of the Tower—Raven and Cyborg were preoccupied with Plasmus and Cinderblock in what...used to be the entertainment room and kitchen, Starfire was fighting a Hotrod in the night sky beside the Tower, and Kid Flash was busy attempting to stem the flow of evil Slade-clone robots that seemed to be pouring into the Tower in every which direction. Robin had disappeared, no doubt on the trail of Slade himself. All in all, it was _mostly_ one of those typical battles with overwhelming odds and terrifying chances of failure that the Titans always managed to land themselves in, but then again in which the Titans were always able to pull off a victory. _Mostly._

The fact that Plasmus, Cinderblock, and Hotrod all seemed to be displaying enhanced superpowers made the odds a little _too_ overwhelming...

"Just what's the deal here?!" Cyborg shouted as he ducked behind the half-destroyed couch as more muck fell around him. "Last time we fought these guys, Plasmus wasn't made of _acidic_ sludge and didn't have _toxic_ bad breath, and Cinderblock definitely couldn't _mold_ himself into different cement..._things_!"

Raven eyed the exasperated Cyborg out of the corner of her eye as she encased Cinderblock's stretching, oozing wet-cement hand in black energy before sending him flying through the Tower's stove. The building shook.

"Obviously they've grown more powerful," Raven yelled back dryly, quickly looking around the room for any sign of Slade or Robin. A robot head flew pass her face closely followed by a couple of robotic limb as Kid Flash dismembered a few with faster-than-lightening high-powered kicks. Lasers from Starfire's eyes glanced off a crumbling wall as Hotrod evaded her aim.

Cyborg rolled his eyes, letting c canon blast hit Plasmus in the face. The monster nearly reformed, of course, and Cyborg set off a few more blasts in a futile attempt to slow him down. "No, _duh_, Raven, thanks a bunch."

"That's why I said obviously."

In all honesty, Raven had no idea what exactly was going on but did not really care one way or another. Her mind was somewhere else—mainly, on what Starfire had said seconds before all hell had broken loose.

_"Friend Beast Boy!__ He is gone!"_

All that Raven really knew and really cared about was that a certain hulk of deranged cement was standing between her and what she really wanted to be doing: finding Beast Boy.

Finding Gar.

Suddenly Robin fell through the ceiling, bringing a couple pounds of plaster and a steel railing with him. With a sickening thud he landed on his back and groaned, wincing magnificently. Cyborg started, as Robin had landed literally right next to him behind the couch. He took one look at Robin's bloodied nose and swelling cheekbone, and gave a crooked, knowing grin.

"Robin! Old buddy, old pal...guess you found Slade?"

A wicked, deep-throated laugh echoed from somewhere above. "Oh, you Titans always amuse me so...I do hope you're enjoying the little presents I brought you."

Starfire blasted into the wrecked room to crunch into a wall, thrown by a flaming Hotrod. "Slade," she spat, pulling herself from the wall. "What have you done?"

Robin picked himself up from the floor, poising and searching the shadows above. "And what are you planning?"

Raven dodged a punch from Cinderblock and managed to slam the refrigerator on him. Cyborg continued shooting canon blasts.

"Robin. Titans." Something flickered in Raven's peripheral vision, and she whipped around only to see nothing. In a second she was sent flying as Cinderblock swatted her while her guard was down.

"What have I done? I brought along a couple of genetically-altered super-thugs to destroy you and your Tower at my bidding. Obviously."

Robin leaped at and began pounding something in a shadow before pulling back as a robotic arm flopped and sparked wildly. His eyes darted around behind his mask once again, searching.

"But what am I planning? You should, perhaps, be asking who genetically-altered these thugs what _she_ is planning..."

Kid Flash threw a robotic head at a shadowed corner of the room only to make a clicking sound with his tongue and turn back to the still continuous flow of robots when the head simply clattered to the ground. He had thought he had him...

"What she is planning, especially with that annoying little brat you once called a teammate."

Time froze.

The Titans halted their fighting, if even for only a moment, and let the gravity of the words Slade had just said hit them. And they hit them hard.

"SLADE!" Robin snarled, face screwed in fury and frustration.

Starfire gave a battle cry and began pounding with fury anew.

Kid Flash gulped as the number of robots appeared to suddenly increase.

"RAVEN!" Cyborg blocked a piece of flying cement with his arm so it wouldn't snap Raven in half. Raven stared ahead, with stunned eyes, not sure what she was doing as her head swam.

_Gar—who has...he's—NO!_

"RAVEN!"

Raven's navy orbs focused on Cyborg's strained and sweating face.

"You know how to find him, right?!"

_Find_...the link. Raven remembered. She nodded slowly.

"Then go FIND HIM!"

Slade smiled beneath his mask from somewhere within the shadows of the battle as he watched the demon-girl Raven zoom away from the Tower, face set in determination. Cinderblock did not pursue her, but turned his attention to Robin.

Slade chuckled darkly.

Things were going just the way he planned...

* * *

Melina Ragonu watched with bright eyes and a wicked smile as the boy in front of her let out a painful, gut-wrenching moan, curled in fetal position on the floor in a futile attempt to escape her beating and pounding. She laughed cruelly. It wasn't her fault the boy refused to acknowledge the situation. Refused to acknowledge her...who knew Logan could be so stubborn? Especially when she had worked so hard.

From his place on the floor, Gar spat blood, trying hard to keep the silhouette of Ragonu is his swimming, quickly-fading vision—his body trembled as he painfully drew in a shaking breath, fighting unconsciousness with all his might. The swelled beginnings of bruises littered his body from where Ragonu had kicked him; he was positive a couple ribs had already snapped. His lip was busted and more than a few teeth were loose. Something warm which Gar heavily suspected was blood oozed down his face from somewhere on his head. That was the worst part of being tied up: Gar's hands and arms were strung up behind him by the chains, useless in helping protect his face and head.

There was also the cold sweat that his body had broken out in, and the increasingly insistent pounding in his head that had not been helped in the slightest by Ragonu's beating. Yeah, things weren't going to well for him.

"Now Logan, I'll ask again: why don't you behave—then we could have such a brilliant time," Ragonu purred from above Gar, causing him to feel more nauseous than he already felt due to what he _knew_ was a rising fever.

"And I'll say again, I'm _not_ my father. Tell me who—_hack_—you are and why...you knew my father!'

Ragonu sighed through her nose and rolled her eyes. He wasn't budging. A quiet cooing noise caused Ragonu to whip around and see her pet gesturing a bit towards the control room Ragonu had been sitting in until the boy had awakened. She narrowed her eyes.

Without warning, she suddenly stooped down and placed two fingers near Gar's jugular. He started, bolting upright and wrenching open his drooping eyes. "What're you—?!"

Ragonu rose just as suddenly, rubbing her chin. Her pet was right. Best to get a move on—the boy's pulse was rising rapidly. The disease was taking hold faster than she had expected. Well...no matter. Things would still go as planned.

Things would go as planned, because they should go as planned. Never again would they not go as planned.

"As planned," she muttered to no one in particular.

Gar lifted his head weakly in response to her voice and caught her attention. "Things didn't go as planned for you after you left, mmmmmmmmm, did they, Logan?"

She bent down and harshly cradled Gar's chin with her red nails. Gar looked at her wearily, though defiantly. He still had no idea what she was talking about.

"No, they didn't...and here's the proof right here." She threw Gar aside and spat at him before beginning to stalk towards the exit. "You couldn't have a precious little picturesque family, and here's the proof right here. Your mistake, your disaster. Right THERE."

Gar stared as Ragonu pointed an accusing finger at him. He...didn't think she was talking to him anymore. As if in response to his thoughts, however, Ragonu seemed to suddenly refocus on him.

"You're going to die within the hour, boy. I would ask if you had any last words you'd like me to pass on, but most definitely I won't pass them on. Perhaps if you had cooperated..."

Gar coughed. "What?! What's that supposed to mean?! Who ARE you—?!"

Ragonu ignored him, and turned to leave once more.

Gar felt his temper spark, despite his current condition and situation. "Fine! It doesn't matter, I don't _care_ who you are! I know my friends will be hear eventually to kick your _ass_—"

Ragonu gave a bark of laughter, turning back towards Gar slowly so he could see her wild eyes. "Your friends, boy? Which ones?" She took a menacing step towards him, a faint outline in the dark. "The ones that are simple-minded city-going teenagers, partying at a club right now downtown, without a clue that you're in danger? Without a clue that you're dying from Sakutia?" Another creeping step. "Or the ones who abandoned you once you'd changed, deemed you worthless once you'd lost what most only dream of having—that inhuman power of science fiction and comic books?" Again, a step, this time into the light. "The friends who kept the knowledge you were dying to themselves? The friends who let their guard down enough to let me get you? The friends who, right now, are being torn apart by Slade and his minions and are entirely oblivious to your whereabouts or your wellbeing?"

Gar watched, her, wide-eyed, speechless. How did she know all this...?

"I daresay they are more worried about their own wellbeing as of the current."

Gar swallowed, forcing sound out of his mouth. "That's not—that's not—"

"That's not true?" Ragonu laughed maliciously. "It most certainly is. If the world is such a place where feelings can be denied and betrayed, souls broken and abandoned, it most certainly is true."

Ragonu's sneering face disappeared into the darkness as she began to leave once again. "_You_ are living proof that love is a fairy-tale just as easily made as destroyed. _You_ are living proof that the world cannot always be as we wish it, and people will not do what we wish they would do. What we _know_ they should do."

The sound of a door creaking open and shutting echoed throughout the room, and Gar sat in silence as the light above him dimmed. Then Ragonu's voice filled the room, crackling over an intercom.

"I know more about you, Garfield Logan, than you would ever know, and not even _I_ am about to save you."


	28. Finale: Broken Faith

**Author's Note:** Hm. Finally got it up. And today's my eighteenth birthday (I got a Sai plushie and the right to vote—I can die happy :D)!! So think of this as a reverse birthday-gift? Yeah, something like that.

P.S.- There's a lot of flying in this chapter. And I've never been electrocuted before. So. Be prepared.

P.P.S (or is it P.S.S.?) –The end is ebil. Very ebil, you might hate me. Be very prepared.

...Epilogue up soonish. Promise for reals this time, guys!

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.**

* * *

Steve Dayton awoke in his bed as the low, faint rumble of part of the Titan Tower collapsing sounded through his cracked window, nearly blending in with the soft rush of late-night traffic. Not realizing what had woken him up, Steve stared through sleep-filled eyes at the glaring digital clock that read 3:23 AM, sitting on his night stand. He would've most likely rolled over and started snoring again if he hadn't managed to sleepily think, _Wonder if Gar's awake..._

The worry that Steve had escaped with sleep now managed to slam into him full-force at the thought of his son who was _not_ sleeping in the room adjacent to him.

After staring at the clock for a moment longer, Steve sat up in his bed and yawned, no longer able to go back to sleep. Swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, Steve grabbed a robe that he pulled on as he stood and stretched, also slipping a pair of slippers onto his feet. Having no idea what he was thinking of doing at this time in the morning, and wondering if he should go back over to the hospital, Steve soon found himself turning the doorknob to Gar's room and stepping inside. His eyes surveyed the shadows of the room, the piled dirty clothes and random objects on the floor. The tousled, unmade bed.

The empty bed.

Steve stared, as if expecting Gar to pop into existence between the sheets at any moment, snoring loudly and _not_ in a hospital dying from a fatal, persistent, _mother-fucking_ disease, with some possible mental-case _freak_ after him.

Steve's hand clenched the doorknob.

_Just don't think about it. Don't think._

Sighing, Steve moved further into the room, crossing his arms as he did so. Scuffed a discarded comic book with a foot here, accidently kicked some boxers there. Steve went to the window, staring at the traffic light changing on the street down below. Slowly, he lifted his head to behold the view that he knew was his son's favorite thing about the apartment. The view of the bay and the Tower...

...Which should _not_ be burning and exploding at various parts, like Gar should not be in the hospital dying.

"Oh, _no_," Steve breathed.

He bolted out of the room.

* * *

Raven swooped down between two buildings in the darkness and shadows, narrowly missing the nearly invisible clothesline strung up and waved her hand so that the Slade-robot chasing her was halted and thrown back in mid-air by the obsidian-power enforced clothesline, head wrenched off from the mechanical body. She smirked over her shoulder as the robot sparked and fell like a rock. She flew out of the alleyway and out into the night sky, hovering above the city as she reached out with her powers to make sure nothing else was following her. That was the third robot already! Well, third time's a charm, right?

Every time she had tried to start meditating somewhere in the city, one of Slade's minion robots had managed to pop out of what seemed like nowhere. Raven huffed a little, surveying the city lights from where she floated in the night sky. No telling how many were out there, waiting—how many had followed her. Slade appeared to have an endless supply. Frowning, Raven debated what to do; she needed to find Gar, and _fast_. It would be tricky, remaining in the air like this while sending her spirit-self to look for Gar—but that was her best option right now. Maintaining the energy needed to stay so far up, plus what was needed to maintain her spirit-self...Raven shook her head, dispelling the doubts in her mind. She could do this. She _needed_ to do this.

Raven closed her eyes with a deep breath, focusing on her center to give herself more power. "_Azarath__, Mentrion, Zinthos,_" she chanted, folding her legs Indian-style. Keeping up the incantation, Raven started to enter her center—and felt herself drop at least ten feet. Eyes shooting open, she immediately steadied herself, gulping. So it was going to take a little—no, a _lot_ more effort than she had initially thought. Sighing, Raven looked down at her bird's-eye view of the city, pondering what to do next.

_Gar is somewhere down there._

The thought came unbidden as Raven watched Jump City below, and she felt a pang in her heart. Gar was down there. Most likely suffering.

What should she _do_?!

_You know what to do, dumbass._

The answering voice was small but snide, and inside her mind.

_Y-yeah, don't b-be afraid! Because it's f-for him!_

_You can't let some loser take OUR Gar away from us, you know?!_

_ Right-on, it's time for some major butt-kicking, so get to it!_

_ Yes, Raven, just listen to your mind—your heart._

And before Raven realized what she was doing, she was remembering. Remembering when she had first met the Titans, and whose stupid grin and corny punch lines had made her want to roll her eyes for the first time in her life. Remembering when she had taken her first bite of pizza, and who had been there cheering her on with ridiculous, made-up cheers. Remembering the first time a prank had been pulled on her, and the good-natured laughter of the one who had pulled it. Remembering the first time she had hugged someone, and the warmth and acceptance of the one who she had hugged. Remembering the fired insults to create distance, yet in the end providing closeness when they were forgiven after attempted and failed returns. Remembering herbal tea prepared and set out in kindness and in an understanding. Remembering reading on the couch and him ignoring the television, the video games, to talk to her and make her real to the world, more than just a shadow.

Remembering the declarations that he _would_ make her laugh, one day. That he _would_ make her smile, one day. That he _would_ make her happy, one day.

Remembering the days that he _did_.

Remembering the hope that she could do the same for him.

_Gar!_ Raven wailed his name desperately in her mind as the memories and thoughts swirled, no longer aware of anything else but her desire and her need to _find him_—to not _lose him_.

What she didn't expect was an answer.

_...Raven?_

* * *

Gar was glaring into the growing darkness, trying to figure out where Ragonu had gone, when he suddenly heard a voice echoing in his head that nearly made him jump out of his skin.

_Gar!_

Gar glanced suspiciously around the darkened room before conceding that yes, he was hearing voices in his head. But more specifically...he furrowed his brow. More specifically a voice in his head that sounded incredibly like...

..._Raven?_

When there was no response, at first Gar thought he had just been kidding himself. Why the hell would he be hearing Raven's voice in his head?! He was just going crazy with the desperate wish that someone, _anyone_ out there would come save his ass—because he certainly wasn't in any shape to do so himself. He sighed.

_Gar?__ Gar, is that you?_

Gar started. _Raven??_

_It is you! Oh, god, I can't believe—where are you?_

_I don't know, it's too dark—WAIT, what the hell? What's going on?!_

_ What? This? It's the link! The telepathic link we set!_

_ ...Oh, riiiiight. The telepathic liiiiink. Yeah, oookay—_

_Moron__. Don't you remember? In the hospital._

_Oh—OH! Right, right._

_ ..._

_ ...This is kinda __COOL__! _

Gar was pretty sure Raven was rolling her eyes. He had a feel for that, since she tended to do it whenever he was involved.

Suddenly the crackle of the intercom filled the room, and Gar's attention snapped back to his current situation. As he had been—uh, "talking" with Raven, the light had steadily grown dimmer. Now the room was almost completely dark, save for a faint glow emitting from behind a glass panel on the wall in front of Gar; most likely where Ragonu was hiding. A faint hiss sounded throughout the room. Gar narrowed his eyes.

"Ahaha, Logan, what's that endearing death glare for? I guess you've found me," Ragonu's voice sounded over the intercom, and the light from behind the glass began adjusting until Gar could see Ragonu, perched on a stool in some sort of—some sort of control room, it looked like. He could tell she was sitting in front of a computer monitor, and there were several buttons, flips, switches and whatnot on the wall behind her. Her creepy "pet" was squatted in one of the corners of the small room, its black visor pointed directly at Gar. Shuddering, Gar made a face at it.

_Gar?__ Gar!_

Gar started again. _Huh? What?_

_ I've been calling your name for a while now, but you weren't responding. Did something happen?_

Gar blinked. _Oh, er, um—sorry, I was...distracted for a minute._

_ ...Try not to do that. You scared the hell out of me._

Gar blinked again. He scared Raven?

_Listen, you need to focus—keep your thoughts directed towards me so I won't lose track of your presence._

_ What? How do I—what're you talking about?_

_ I knew you wouldn't understand. Okay, I can sense your presence and I'm flying towards it right now—if you get distracted, it's harder for me to sense where you are and it'll take me longer to find you._

_ Find...me...you're on your way?! She told me Slade—_

_ Yes, Slade attacked the Tower. Who told you that?_

_ Ragonu. This chick that's got me, her name is Ragonu—she's INSANE, Rae—_

Gar suddenly felt his heart jump, and stopped—a foreign, quick surge of happiness flowed through his mind. He frowned. What was...?

_Well, Gar, supervillains do tend to run on the insane side._

Gar shook his head, even though Raven couldn't see him. _No, it's not like that! I don't think she's anything but an insane woman! She knew my father, Rae—_

There it was again. Foreign, quick, and happy—not as strong as the first but still there. He started to shift his weight some off a bruised foot. _I swear she thinks I'M my father, it's really cree—ARGH! Shit!_

_What? Gar? GAR! What happened?_

This time a strong surge of sickening fear flowed through Gar, consuming his mind for a second and making a cold sweat pop up on the back of his neck. Gar dragged in a rugged breath, trying to ignore the unpleasant needles left behind by the white-hot pain that had run up his side when he moved too much. _Sorry, Raven, I think I've got a broken rib or two. Shouldn't've moved._

_Damn. What'd she do to you?_

Gar felt his face heat at least ten degrees in the darkness, a mixture of embarrassment and disgust rising in his gut. Time to change the subject. _Ahaha__—you know, Raven, I think you might be transmitting a few of your emotions through this link..._

Silence for a moment. _So are you. What'd she DO to you?_

_Look, can we talk about this later?!_

_Fine...are you in an old warehouse?_

_ How would I know? I told you, it's completely dark in here!_

_ Right. Sorry._

Gar wrinkled his nose, trying to calm the itch that had started on its tip. He laid the back of his head against the pole behind him, staring up into the darkness.

_Rae. Hey Raaaeee. Rae, Rae, Rae. Rae-rae._

_ WHAT?_

_ ...Nothing. I just didn't know how much you loved me calling you that, Rae!_

A surge of hot embarrassment filled Gar's body. He snickered.

_YOU—YOU—_

_ Calm down, Rae! No, actually, wait—calm down, Rae-rae!_

_GARFIELD__LOGAN__.__ We WILL talk about this later._

Gar felt his lip split as he cracked a grin, despite the current state of things. _Haha__, sorry Rae, I couldn't resist!! Go easy on me, plea—_

"AAAAAAARRRUUUGGHHH!! AAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

The scream that tore from Gar's lips as his back arched and his body convulsed was brutal, and multiplied a hundred times over in his mind.

_GAR!_

The pain was immense, tearing, and searing, everywhere all over his body at once, blinding his senses to where both his screams aloud and Raven's screams in his mind did not reach him. Blood speckled his chin only to evaporate off, his dry lips splitting open again and again as his mouth grew wider with his agony.

...And then, it was over, just as instantly as it had begun. Gar continued screaming for a moment longer, before his throat closed off and he was gasping for air. Wha...? What...?

_GAR! Dear GOD, ANSWER ME!_

_ Rae,_ he thought weakly as his body collapsed against itself, his fingers and eyelids twitching, mouth flopped open. He felt like jelly. It still hurt, everywhere, GOD it hurt EVERYWHERE...!

"Oh dear, looks like I nearly overdid it." Ragonu's voice cackled over the intercom, full of twisted mirth. "But you didn't look like you were paying attention to me, Logan darling, and so I though a _jolt_ to the sense would do you some good. I do _hate_ being ignored."

Gar gasped in pain, forcing himself to look at Ragonu as she smiled cruelly. Did she just _electrocute_ him?

"Oh, but don't worry about dying too soon, Logan," Ragonu purred into the intercom. "My nanomeds are surrounding you, are probably inside of you by now, and they'll let me know if I'm pushing too hard. Now onto what I was saying before."

Gar's eyelids fluttered. Nanomeds...the hiss he'd heard! So, she was monitoring his vitals in the control room.

"I have quite a time planned out for us tonight, Logan." Ragonu's voice was eerily cheerful—if she were five she would've been skipping around in a circle. "I'm rather excited. It got rather boring in Africa, although I pretended the monkey was you, and I was so anxious to see your precious face. But once I saw, of course..." She clicked her tongue, chuckled throatily.

"Well, you know what they say—keeping the hunger at bay only makes one more _ferocious_."

Gar felt the shock coming as hair all over his body stood on end a split second before scorching agony, once more, hit. He knew his screams were inhuman, although he couldn't hear them. And then, of course, as quickly as it began it stopped—Gar whimpered pitifully, twitching.

_GAR! I'm in the warehouse where I feel your presence but nothing's here. Nobody's HERE! Help me, Gar!! Where __ARE__ you?!_

Suddenly, with a small click a blinding light surrounded Gar, making him yelp feebly and squeeze his eyes against the burning white light.

Raven's voice in his head...sounded so far away...he lay still for a while longer, head buzzing, before cracking his eyes open. Gar blinked as his watering eyes adjusted to the harsh light causing tears to leak down his face. Slowly shapes and shadows came into focus, albeit a swimming and foggy focus, and Gar realized he wasn't in a room.

He was in a glass box.

Well, not a box, exactly. More like a really small room, the size of a large closet, made of glass. More like a large cage really. A large, glass cage.

Outside was the control room Ragonu was sitting in, made of some sort of metal. And beyond that...a huge room, with huge, hanging florescent-light lamps swaying, which had been dark before but now shone brilliantly. The room was at least the size of half a football field, with no windows or door. Well, only one door, at the far end of the room atop a long flight of stairs.

_Rae. Hey, Rae..._

_Gar??_

_ ...I think I'm in the basement._

"Really," Ragonu's voice crackled over the intercom again, "it was a shame it only took me a couple years to discover and unfold what your father meddled in and fretted over for decades. To undo in mere seconds what your father sweat over for weeks with the life of his son at stake. Because now it's all over and done with so quickly..."

Gar could barely focus on the words, but..._to undo...?_

And that was when the ceiling crashed down.

* * *

"Starfire!" Robin shouted as he brought his staff down atop Cinderblock's head, just managing to dodge the cement-morphing fist the mutant threw at him. "To your left!"

Starfire turned and aimed her laser-vision to her left, vaporizing the acidic loogie Plasmus had hacked at her.

"Oi," Kid Flash gasped from his position of defending Robin and Cyborg while they battled Cinderblock and Plasmus. Sweat beaded around his eyes and on his upper lip, and his legs were beginning to feel the burn. "How much longer...are we gonna hafta keep this _up_?!"

Robin frowned as he dodged Cinderblock yet again. He knew the rest of the team wasn't much better off than Kid Flash—Starfire was getting sloppy with her marksmanship, Cyborg was still mentally exhausted from his previous night of hacker-tracing antics, and Robin himself wasn't at his height either. Not to mention they'd been holding off Slade's minions for the better part of an hour now. And speaking of Slade...Robin was honestly surprised the villain hadn't tried to pick on him, or any of the other Titans, for the past almost-an-hour. No snide marks...nothing.

Hence, instead of answering Kid Flash: "SLADE! I know you're still here!!" Robin shouted into the darkness of the battle. He threw a couple of birdarangs at Cinderblock for cover. "What is this?! What game are you playing?!"

There was no answer for a second, and Robin almost cursed. But then, that haunting laughter echoed through the ears of the battling teens.

"Why Robin, I thought you seemed to be enjoying yourself down there. You do like a challenge, don't you?"

"SLADE!"

"It looks as if Ragonu's work is proving to be quite the masterpiece. For a moment there, I almost thought of letting them finish you off."

Robin ground his teeth, and rolled to avoid another of Cinderblock's attacks before leaping and landing a rather ineffective blow with his staff. Ragonu...that name sounded familiar. But what the hell was Slade talking about?!

"Then again..."

Suddenly a shadow landed beside Robin, and he was sent sprawling away from Cinderblock. The shadow cracked its knuckles, laughing menacingly and sauntering towards the fallen Robin. Cinderblock moved his full attention onto Cyborg. Robin managed to pick himself and dodge Slade before another hit could take the breath out of him.

"...that would take all the fun out of it for me, wouldn't it? I'm so glad you brought that to my attention."

* * *

For a few heart-hammering seconds, Gar was sure he had finally reached the end as dust billowed into the basement along with raining slabs of cement and plaster. The whole room seemed to shake, and Gar squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the glass around him to shatter and pierce his body, as tons of broken cement crushed him into nothingness. However, after the abrupt rumbling of the room had stopped and nothing seemed to be piercing or crushing his body, Gar cautiously cracked open an eye—and found a pretty impressive sight.

Raven hovered overhead amidst the flying dust and dirt, facing the control room, hands raised, and every single piece of rubble halted in midair, encased in black energy. She hung in the air for a second longer, before giving a flick of one of her wrists.

The control room was instantly buried.

Gar's eyes were now completely open, and wide at that. He didn't even realize for a few moments now Raven had been standing outside the glass, pounding on it furiously with her fists and calling his name.

"Gar! Are you alright?"

Her voice was slightly muffled, but he could still hear her.

"Stay low to the ground."

What? Well, whatever. Like he had a choice...

His vision darkened without warning and Gar nearly panicked until he realized it was due to the obsidian energy covering every inch of glass around him. Gar's eyes grew considerably bigger as a loud splintering crack sounded, and Raven's magic carefully discarded what was left of the shattered and demolished glass cage in a heap a safe couple of meters away. Gar barely had time to ogle at the act, however, before he felt a shadow fall across him again. This time, very Raven-shaped.

"Gar."

"Raven," he called weakly, and he found himself buried in the folds of purple-blue cape as slim arms snaked quickly around his limp body and held him fiercely. He held back a hiss of pain as Raven's warm body pressed against his wounds, instead hiding his face in Raven's hair as she hid her face in his neck.

They remained like that, hearts pounding against each other's chests, for a sweet moment before Raven pulled anxiously away, holding Gar at arm's length as she began to silently inspect the damage. Gar dazedly watched Raven's eyebrows draw together and a dangerous light glint in her eyes as they traveled down his torso, only for her face to erupt in a full-blown, extremely flushed blush when her eyes traveled a little _too_ low. Her gaze immediately jerked back to Gar's face. A light bulb in one of the slightly swinging lights overhead exploded with a shower of sparks.

He chuckled faintly, cracking a tired grin despite the sharp pain and wetness that signified his lips had crack yet again. He felt dizzy. "Sorry, Rae, I should've...should've warned you the party was...X-rated."

A vein in Raven's forehead throbbed even though her cheeks were still pink. "That's nothing to joke about," she growled. She carefully reached behind Gar and with a wave of her hand his wrists, though raw and bruised, were free.

"Can you stand?" Raven asked, unclasping her cape from around her shoulders and moving it to Gar's.

Gar hugged the cape around himself, still leaning heavily on the pole behind him. "I...I'm not sure." He grunted, and attempted to steady himself in a standing upright position—until the world suddenly swam around him, and he was falling forward towards the floor. "Gya!"

Gar squeezed his eyes shut and waited for the impact—an impact that never came. Instead, he felt a cold hand grasp at his arm frantically and then he was being pulled backwards until he collided with Raven, and she was clutching his shoulders again, but this time keeping him upright as he collapsed against her. "Gar!"

"Ah...I guess that's a no," Gar gasped, swallowing his dizziness down. Something was really wrong; it felt wrong in the pit of his stomach. He leaned into Raven, trying to get rid of the sense of vertigo that seemed to be coming over him.

"Well. This is...definitely not what I had in mind," Gar breathed. He could sense Raven's confused look without having to turn towards her face. "You know, I always wanted to be the knight in shining...shining armor. But it kind of...turned around on me." He looked up at Raven's face, and tried to ignore the worry and fear echoing in the back of her piercing, navy orbs. "No fair." He cracked a smile, and succeeded at bringing on another violent coughing fit.

"Gar?" Raven's panicked voice cut through his hacks and wheezes as she gripped his shaking body tighter, at the same time shifting his weight so she could feel his face with the back of one of her hands. "You're—you're burning up. We have to get you out of here..."

Gar's coughs subsided, and he struggled to lift himself up more before freezing completely. Somewhere in the background, the clatter of loose debris falling sounded in the silence. His eyes locked on Raven's, and he smiled again gently before slowly bringing up a trembling hand to brush against her cheek softly. Her eyes widened as she found herself pulled into those forest green depths, unexpectedly swimming with tears.

"Yeah...I thought..." He caressed her face lightly. "For a moment there, I...thought I'd never see you again before I..."

And without warning his lips were crashing into hers, burning with a feverish heat, passion, and desperation that took Raven completely by surprise. His brow was furrowed with an anguish she didn't recognize, and she could do nothing but hold him up as one arm encircled her waist, the other still cupping her face. Without thinking much, Raven closed her eyes and accepted the kiss, returning it even, ignoring the emotions running rampant through her head and the crackling energy inside threatening to break loose. Something wet on her cheek distracted her, and Raven cracked open an eye to see tears running freely down Gar's face.

Delicately, Raven broke the kiss. The two stared breathlessly at each other for a moment before embracing each other again, Gar letting out a strangled, "Rae!"

"I'm here." Raven felt her own eyes tearing up, but also a peace beginning somewhere in the abyss of herself that soothed and put the roaring, crackling energy to rest. "You're still here. I'm here. We're here."

Gar nodded into Raven's shoulder. "We're here," he echoed quietly.

For now, he was still here.

Carefully Raven slipped Gar's arm around her shoulder so she could help him walk him over to a particularly large chunk of ceiling to sit him down. "I'm going to try to fix those ribs of yours and your burns before teleporting to the hospital. You won't make it through my dimension in this condition, so—"

With no warning, a black streak came out of nowhere and slammed into Raven, effectively sending Raven and Gar sprawling—in opposite directions.

Gar hit the ground hard, rolling and scraping along the floor, wincing. Every bump and touch felt hypersensitive and uncomfortable, as if sandpaper were grinding against his skin. When he came to a stop, he was panting and the world was spinning worse than ever before. Something akin to sour bile rose in the back of his throat. Gar groaned.

"You!"

At the sound of Raven's cry, Gar drowsily lifted his head—and his heart nearly stopped when he saw her being held at knifepoint by Ragonu's strange henchman. Raven was glaring at it like she wanted to rip its head off, seemingly unaware of her dangerous situation save for the fact that she _wasn't_ actually ripping its head off. Yet.

"Well, well, well," a voice all too familiar purred silkily, the harsh click of stilettos growing slowly closer to where Gar lay. Panicking, shuddering uncontrollably, Gar tried to get up to no avail—all the strength seemed to be seeping from his limbs. The advancing footsteps stopped. "Logan, I didn't say this little date we were having was open to invitation."

Nails dug into his scalp as a hand gripped his hair, yanking his head up and off the floor to meet the blinding light of the swaying lamps above and the crazed, coal-black gaze of Ragonu. She laughed wickedly in his face. "But, she seems to know my pet—so maybe they can keep each other company while we play some, hmmm?"

She laughed again.

* * *

The clink of steel blocking steel sounded as Slade blocked yet another attack by Robin. The Boy Wonder dodged the counterattack and landed neatly a few feet away, breathing heavily.

"What is this, Slade? Who's Ragonu? Why do you know about Beast Boy?"

Slade chuckled. "So many questions, Robin. It's always interrogation with you."

Robin simmered. "RAGH!!"

Slade dodged the kick, and brought and hand down on the back of Robin's neck, causing the boy to choke and stumble, though he quickly rolled out of range. Slade smirked under his mask. "In answer to your questions: my aim is always the same in your respect, Robin. To break up the Titans, and break you. Ragonu was merely my ticket to do so this time around. And honestly, Robin, what do I _not_ know?"

"You planned all of this from the start, didn't you?!"

Slade ducked a punch thrown by Robin. "I planned? I'm flattered, Robin—you give me too much credit. I simply took advantage of the situation, as good criminals do."

"What do you mean?" Robin snarled.

Slade's explanation was cut short when the Tower suddenly shook rather violently.

"RRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHRRRR!"

Cinderblock's roar echoed off the walls of the Tower, causing both Robin and Slade to pause in their combat. For the roar wasn't one of anger or triumph, or even savagery—instead, it sounded distinctly of horrified confusion and pain.

Following the cry almost instantly was a terrified shriek—one that sounded distinctly of—

"_Starfire__!_"

All thoughts of getting information out of Slade fled Robin's mind as he immediately ran towards the direction of Starfire's scream—and surprisingly, Slade let him go.

"Starfire!" Robin cried again as he came into view of the ongoing battle; or at least what had been ongoing. Now, much to Robin's relief, all the remaining Titans were lined up against a shaky-looking wall, uninjured and apparently fine—aside from the absolute looks of shock and repulsion painted on their faces. Cyborg's eyes were wide and his mouth open, Starfire's eyes were as big as saucers and her hands covered her mouth, and Kid Flash...well, Kid Flash look like he had just swallowed sour milk.

After assessing his team's condition, Robin deemed it time to look at what exactly was so ghastly—and regretted doing so when he did.

What Robin _guessed_ had used to be both Cinderblock and Plasmus was now a collective and moaning mound of heavy, cement-textured, yet purple-greenish, goo. _Moving_ goo, too. But moving rather pathetically. And still somehow managing to burn holes through the floor.

"What the...?" Robin was pretty sure his face looked very much akin to his comrades.

"_What?_" Slade's voice echoed sinisterly from above, sounding none too pleased. "What is this...? _Ragonu_...!"

Robin pulled his eyes from the villainous disaster in front of him, blindly glancing around for any signs of his archenemy—though his heart wasn't really in it—looking at anything other than the gooey, glowing mess in front of him was pretty difficult—

"Titans, you have the pleasure of escaping my attention yet again for now. Please do give the demon girl and..._previous_...shape-shifter my regards." Slade's voice grew fainter and Robin growled in frustration. "Oh, well—that _is_ if you see them alive again."

A menacing laugh echoed through the now destroyed Tower, and Slade was gone.

The Titans stayed silent for all of three seconds before Cyborg pointed at the glowing, groaning sludge and burst out, "You mean _we_ have to clean up _that_ shit?!"

No one answered him. Instead, Robin asked, "Yeah...what _happened_ here?"

Silence, again, before everyone tried to explain at once.

"MAN, it was crazy—"

"I was just minding my own business, fighting the freaking robots—"

"There was this most dreadful scream—"

"And then BAM—they liquefied, there's no other word for it—"

"Melted, like in _The Wizard of Oz_, you know—"

"Most horrifying, Robin, it was—!"

"Wait," Robin broke into all the explanations. "You're telling me they just...dissolved into this or something?"

The other three Titans looked at each other, and then nodded in unison.

"Oooookay."

All four Titans looked at the slime-pile of used-to-be-villains. It was still moving.

"Right...so Cyborg, get some back-up on the line to help us with this. We gotta go after Raven and Beast Boy."

* * *

Gar struggled to keep his terrified gaze focused on Raven, eyes drooping from exhaustion and fever. The light glinting on the knife made the sharpness of the edge all too real as it pressed against Raven's neck, making a frightening indent on her pale skin. _I can't pass out now, I can't pass out now,_ Gar told his rebelling, fading body. _Raven's...she's...Rae's in trouble! I have to—!_

"You do have the rudest friends, Logan," Ragonu commented lightly from above Gar, still gripping his scalp and head. "Dropping tons of rubble on top of the hostess is no way to make an entrance at the party. Good thing my little theater box was steel-enforced, and not so easily crushed."

"You...leave Rae out of this..." Gar managed weakly, drawing in rasping breaths.

Ragonu looked down at Gar as if she was seeing him for the first time. "Oh? The damsel has a name?"

Gar expected some snide remark to follow, but Ragonu remained silent, focusing her dark eyes on Raven, seeming lost in distant thoughts.

"I don't know who you are," Raven called from across the debris, tendrils of anger beginning to seep into her voice, "but you're the cause of all this, aren't you?"

Belatedly, Ragonu registered Raven was speaking to her and after a slight delay chose to laugh wickedly rather than acknowledge the accusation with a direct answer. "Foolish bitch!"

The lights above flickered forebodingly; a dangerous hum resonated through the air. The knife wavered some as Raven's hair suddenly began floating, the edges of her eyes turning red. "Tell me if you value your lives: what game is this you're playing?"

Any mirth left Ragonu's face in an instant at Raven's words, a murderous intent rolling off her as her black eyes darkened. She dug her nails further into Gar's scalp, causing him to cry out. "_Game_? What _game_ am I playing?" she spat.

She peered down at Gar again, with an expression of utterly demented disdain. Then she darted out her other hand, grabbed his neck, and began to squeeze.

"The same _game_ this BASTARD world decided to _play_ with ME!"

When Raven saw Ragonu's hand squeezing Gar's throat, she did not think. She did not hesitate. She did not panic. She _reacted_.

In a blink of an eye, Ragonu's pet was flying through the air, being pummeled in midair further and further back by black energy until it smashed into a wall, going at least thirty miles an hour. The impact smacked loudly throughout the room, and the figure crumpled into a heap on the floor. Within another instant, Raven was floating in the air before it, tentacles of obsidian energy crackling around her, three pairs of red, demonic eyes glowing heinously as they glared down. All six eyes narrowed, and then suddenly the figure was buried in black-encased debris. All the debris lifted up again. The figure twitched. The debris slammed down again. Up. _Slam_. Up. _Slam_. Up. _Slam_. Up...

The helmet was crushed and cracked open. The body was splayed at odd angles and broken. Something wet and pinkish was inside. Whatever it had been, it hadn't been human. Now it wasn't moving.

The debris slammed down again.

Bloody eyes turned towards Ragonu, who was still squeezing Gar's neck. He struggled weakly.

It takes nine seconds to choke a person.

It had been six seconds.

All six eyes narrowed again. Black energy surrounded an oblivious Ragonu's wrists.

A sharp crack sounded.

"AAUUGGGH!"

Ragonu launched herself away from Gar, pain twisting her face and her wrists hanging limply, dangling—at odd angles. Gar collapsed onto his knees, coughing and wheezing. And then, Ragonu was sent flying.

She landed with a thud and a shriek, sliding, skidding and rolling until she came to a stop. Moaning, she curled into a fetal position. Dirt and blood covered her, new scrapes and gashes present from her flight. Suddenly, her eyes snapped open. "No," she groaned, as if possessed. She rose to a crouch and shakily stood, only to come face-to-face with the red eyes of Raven. Ragonu stared. Her face morphed into a snarl of wrath and frenzy, a wild light in her eyes.

"NO!" she screeched, and lunged—past Raven, and back towards Gar.

Before she could take two steps, she was flung again...this time straight into the pile of glass shards.

"ARRGHHHH! AAAH!"

Ragonu's screams echoed like the harsh sound of her body hurtling into the glass. Blood oozed from cuts and gashes as the shards buried into her skin, splintering and piercing. "NO!" She screeched once more, gurgling slightly. Scarlet stained various parts of her clothes, slowly spreading. Tinkling and scratching sounded as she heavily got on all fours, attempting to stand but only staggering and falling back. Red eyes glared down at her. She coughed and spat blood. A lot of blood.

"NOOO!" she more or less moaned. "I _loved_ him! I LOVED HIM! All _he_ stood for, _I_ stood for! And then they...! Bastards, BASTARDS! In the end I...! TAKE HIM! _Take him_. Aha. HA. HAHAHA. I _took_ from HIM. RUINED. LOOK AT HOW RUINED YOU ARE. Like me, finally like me. Look at you, LOOK AT YOU!"

Her eyes were wide, wild and deadly, like those of an excited predator, but unfocused and cloudy. She was, however, looking towards Gar.

"You will _die_ like this, DIE! The same way _I_ did ALL THOSE YEARS AGO! YOU KILLED ME! You...killed me..._you...killed me_...but now..."

Her voice was quieting, fading. She coughed up blood again, made a feeble move as if to get up, but to no avail.

"Now...it's YOUR TURN! FILTTH! You..._you will rot_...I will see you _rot_, ROT! DIE! Die. Die, die, die, die, die..._die_..._die_..._die_..._die_—"

Her eyes rolled. Her voice was a deadbeat whisper.

"_Die_..."

Her head fell to her chest and her body slumped.

All was silent.

Raven stood there, facing the now-still Ragonu buried in the glass, and lowered her arms, eyes strong but no longer crimson.

All was silent.

She turned away, mouth set in a firm, grim line, and rushed over to Gar.

"Gar," Raven breathed as she knelt by his trembling form. He was wheezing quietly. She carefully got him into a sitting position, and felt his forehead with the back of her hand. "Gar, are you still with me?"

Gar nodded numbly, although Raven's voice was muffled and distant, like she was talking to him through water. His body was hot, _so hot_. His breath came in short, sharp bursts and his throat seemed to constrict more with each breath, like Ragonu hadn't stopped choking him, like her incredibly strong, cold and clammy hands where still wrapped around his windpipe, crushing—

_S-stop,_ Gar reprimanded himself somewhere out of the deliria he could feel overcoming him. _Look, Rae's lips are moving, she's talking...focus on what she's saying FOCUS._

Raven stopped speaking and Gar weakly nodded his head again, as if he had heard and understood whatever she had said—he vaguely registered her reaching for her Titan communicator on her belt, saying something into it, listening to it; Gar tried to support more of his own weight, so her hands were more free to work the gadget. His fingers brushed against a large chunk of cement, about the size of his hand. He poked it absently, squinting and turning his head upwards. Why had it just gotten like a million times brighter in here? He laughed softly, whoever was turning up the lights wasn't very nice, it was hurting his head—that shadow looming over Raven was almost a relief—

His thoughts froze and body jolted.

Ragonu's face was twisted, leering and estranged as she prepared to bring the glinting, jagged dagger of glass down into the unsuspecting Raven's back.

"RAAAAAYRHHGGG!"

Both Gar's battle cry and Ragonu's crazed scream of pain sounded as one as Gar grabbed the chunk of cement, used Raven's shoulder to push himself up, and slammed the rock into Ragonu's head with all his strength.

In that split second after the rock connected, as the glass shard clattered to the ground, as both bodies fell—Gar's into Raven's waiting arms, Ragonu's with a harsh _thump_ to the ground—their eyes connected. And in those coal-black depths, underneath the crazed lunacy, there was something more.

A look of betrayal. Of pathetic hurt, and of a desperately broken faith.

And then it was gone.

When Gar's body crashed down atop Raven, it was all she could do to catch him, and then immediately duck away and out of reach from Ragonu's body.

_"Raven?!"_ Robin's voice crackled over the communicator held tightly in Raven's left hand. _"What was that scream? Are you guys alright?!"_

Raven didn't respond to Robin's yell for a minute. She stared at the body lying in front of her.

"Is she dead?"

Raven almost jumped at the sound of Gar's voice, as hoarse and dry as it sounded. He was pretty much draped across her, and Raven was sure the only reason he was upright was because she was supporting him. He seemed as if he was about to fall apart at the joints. He faced over Raven's shoulder with his eyes closed.

Raven looked at Ragonu's frozen face, her eyes wide but unblinking and unseeing. The way one eye was crunched and raised unnaturally, the temple next to it split and oozing, and the surrounding area purple.

"Yeah." Raven swallowed. "She's dead."

_"RAVEN!"_

Raven cleared her throat. "Robin! We're fine," Raven said into the communicator.

_"We're in the warehouse now! We're headed towards the basement door!"_

"...Watch out. There's a hole in the ground."

_"What? ...Oh."_

Raven gave a tiny smile. She could hear faint shouts and footsteps from up above.

"Gar?" She shifted Gar in her arms, made sure his back was kept to Ragonu's body. "Gar, hang in there, the other Titans are coming."

Gar looked up at her, his eyes clouded and shining feverishly. "The others...?"

"Yes, they're coming now." Raven frowned a bit, her brow furrowing. His breaths were way too shallow and short, he was burning up, his lips and mouth looked awfully dry, and he was awfully pale...

"Hey," he whispered chidingly, a ghost of a smile on his lips. He raised a shaking hand, and caressed gently one of her cheeks with his thumb. "Don't...make that f-face."

A pained look flashed across Raven's face, but then it was gone. "Right. Let's get you up."

As soon as they had eased to standing up and facing the staircase on the far end of the basement, Gar clinging to Raven with one arm around her neck as she supported the rest of his weight on her hip and holding his waist, the door to the basement exploded open and shouts echoed throughout the room.

"Raven!"

Raven's head snapped up. "Robin! Hurry!"

Robin started bounding down the stairs followed closely by lots of people in uniforms, both blue and lab-coat white. Cyborg and Kid Flash appeared at the door not a moment later, followed by a fraught-looking Steve Dayton. Starfire suddenly appeared flying down through the hole in the ceiling with a cry of indignation at the sight of her worse-for-wear friends.

Eagerly, Raven stepped forward. Head pounding and still in a haze, Gar made to step forward too...and felt his stomach drop as the world titled sharply. Gar's arm slipped from around Raven's neck, and his body from her tired grasp. The world flashed an unbelievably bright white as Gar fell, then back so Gar could glimpse all the frantic, panicked, fearful, and dread-filled faces of his loved ones as he collapsed to the ground...especially Raven's...

"_Rae..._"

Gar managed to mouth three words.

The world went black.

All was silent.


	29. Epilogue

OMFG I'M ALIVE!!! WHOA!!

Heh. If you want my thoughts, reflections, and excuses on this chapter as well as the rest of the story, go HERE:

h t t p : / / a m u s e d 4 e v e r . d e v i a n t a r t . c o m / j o u r n a l / 2 1 7 9 1 9 5 5 / --just take out the spaces. :)

Also: I'm looking for a betareader for my next TT fanfic (won't be up for a while, though), and I had a really good salad for lunch today.

Otherwise...

As of 12/3/2008, 12:23:18AM GMT Eastern:

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...Thanks so much for the ride, guys. :D

**

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Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in the Teen Titans show or comics.

* * *

**"Alright, load 'er up!"

The crane groaned and creaked as it swung with the weight of the twisted, half-snapped steel beam it carried. A group of bulky, orange-vested and varying degrees of beer-bellied men stood around, waving their arms or shielding their eyes from the afternoon sun.

"And that's it, then."

The gruff voice distracted Robin's gaze from the workmen cleaning up the last of the debris, and caused him to turn in order to meet scraggily-bearded, squinty-eyed, sweating face of the construction commissioner. His hard hat was pushed up on his brow, to keep it from slipping down on his face, his shirt sleeves rolled up as he flipped through contract papers and details secured to an age-old, beaten clipboard.

Robin turned back to surveying the clean-up crew as they steadily loaded the beam into the huge crate that would shortly be lifted by two helicopters and flown to the city dump. Robin could hear the choppers blades whirring faintly in the distance as their shining figures grew closer to the Titan Tower from across the bay—the Tower that was no longer half in shambles, as it had been a little over a week ago.

"The reconnaissance team should be here after lunch, around three or four, to help your big friend there with any last-minute touch-ups inside."

Robin's "big friend" was Cyborg, who was standing a little ways off, laughing raucously along with some of the workers. Robin nodded absently. "Good. Thank you, and your men, for coming out here on short notice."

The contractor shook his head. "S'not any trouble, Mr. Robin—it's our job, and anytime for you guys, with you protectin' the city and all. You know?"

Robin's eyes crinkled a little under his mask as he gave a small smile. "Yes. Still, thank you."

"Yo! Robin, man!" Cyborg's booming voice drew both the contractor's and Robin's attention as he sauntered forward from the group of men he had been talking with—they were now heading over to one side of the crate. The helicopters would be here soon, and not long after their ride back across the bay and to lunch.

"Reconnaissance team will be here at three or four, Cyborg," Robin said as Cyborg stopped next to him. Cyborg smiled and nodded at the contractor.

"Well, then, have a nice day, boys," the contractor said in farewell, and went to join his men.

"So, this didn't take as long as I thought it would," Cyborg said cheerfully, waving goodbye. "I'm glad City Hall decided to help us out, made things a lot easier."

"Yeah," Robin agreed. "Though, they couldn't have us out of commission for too long, with Slade still at large..."

Cyborg studied Robin from the corner of his eyes for a moment, before looking back in front of him. "Thinking about that, still, are you?"

Robin didn't say anything, but sighed.

"There wasn't anything we could've done, Robin," Cyborg said firmly, though not unkindly. "He was gone before we knew it, and if we had gone after him, we wouldn't have gotten to Raven and Beast Boy in time."

"In time?" Robin smiled. "Yeah, I guess you could say that."

Cyborg looked at Robin oddly, and was about to ask what he was talking about—before a whir of dust kicked up and Kid Flash was suddenly standing next to them.

"Hey. They done?"

"Kid? You're still here?" Cyborg gave Kid Flash, who was dressed in street clothes, a surprised glance. "I thought you said you were leaving this morning!"

"Awww, you want rid of me that bad? And it's Kid _Flash_, not just Kid..."

Robin turned away from the workers as the helicopters finally arrived and started to lower. He motioned for Cyborg and Kid Flash to follow him up to the Tower's entrance. "You don't have anything on you—does that mean you're about to go?"

Kid Flash nodded. "Yeah—I just got the last of my stuff moved into Wally's place. Just dropping by one last time before taking off for good."

"Glad you did," Robin said, reaching into one of his pockets. "I have something for you."

"A present? You shouldn't have! Starfire'll be jealous." He smirked as Cyborg snorted.

Robin rolled his eyes, and plopped a Titan communicator into Kid Flash's outstretched hands—an obviously brand-new, decently shiny and unused Titan communicator.

Kid Flash's eyes widened, and looked from Robin to Cyborg, and back to Robin. "Does this mean...?"

"We want you on call, you know," Cyborg chuckled.

"We did instate you as an honorary member, on-call when we need you—you can't shrug that off just because you're getting tutored," Robin added.

Kid Flash grinned. "_Tutoring_? Yeah right! More like signing up for death by working my ass off! Wally can be a beast when he wants too." Kid Flash tucked the communicator into his pocket. "I'll hold onto this in case it gets too bad..."

"Friends!"

The shout came from up above, and all three young men looked up to see Starfire straight for them—by the looks of the flying nosedive she was in, she had been on the roof. Right before she reached them, she gracefully flipped over and landed next to Robin, beaming.

"Hello friends!" she repeated. "Especially Friend Kid Flash—are you preparing for the splitting out?"

Kid Flash laughed. "Yeah, Starfire, I'm heading out—Wally's expecting me..." he checked his watch, and grimaced. "Crap. He was expecting me five minutes ago."

"Ooooooh," Cyborg sympathized. "Better get going, you're probably already due for an ass-whooping."

"Hardy-har," Kid Flash grated out, just before he was trapped in one of Starfire's bear hugs.

"Oh, goodbye Kid Flash! Please, guard your ass carefully so you do not have to partake in too much whooping!"

Cyborg cracked up as she released Kid Flash, and clapped him on the back. "HA! Hoooo! Yeah, exactly what she said, man. Later!"

"Thanks," Kid Flash growled. He turned towards the Titans' leader.

Robin snickered, and then held out his hand. Kid Flash took it enthusiastically. "Seriously, though, watch out for yourself," Robin said as authoritatively as ever, but in good heart. "And thanks...for everything. You really helped us out."

Kid Flash winked. "That's the duty of a superhero, right? Well...later guys! For now, at least!"

All three Titans waved as he took of in...a flash.

They continued waving a second after he disappeared. The _chop-chop_ of the helicopters grew into a thundering noise as they arrived, blowing everyone's hair every which way.

"So," Robin shouted over the noise. "Three o'clock. We have some time until then."

"Yeah," Cyborg shouted back.

"Where's Raven?"

Starfire shouted an answer this time. "You know very well where she is, dear Robin!"

All three of the Titans grinned.

"Let's go join her!" Robin yelled.

There weren't any objections.

* * *

With a thud the box landed atop another as dust particles flew into the air from the disturbance, creating a flurrying of gold streams in the afternoon sun shining through the open window. It was a sunny, slightly breezy summer day, with a clear bright blue sky and the city below alive with churning crowds and blowing, screeching traffic. Someone was blasting a stereo somewhere on the street, and the pounding bass seemed to faintly shake the air outside. The air in the nearly empty apartment room, however, was almost completely still—the stacks of boxes muffled the sounds from the city, and the air as well. The room felt stifling to its single occupant.

Straightening himself from bending over the box he had just moved, Garfield Logan swiped the back of his hand across his brow, brushing the beginning beads of sweat away. He had been packing since eleven this morning, and had managed get most everything hastily crammed into boxes. Still, the sheen of sweat on his bare chest and arms—he had long ago abandoned his shirt in the summer heat, especially with the stuffy room—was obvious, and the short gasps of breath he was taking now proved it had taken effort. Of course, Gar wasn't about to let packing take up too much time of his day. Sauntering over to the open window, Gar gazed at the view of the Titan Tower, now fully repaired from its previous damages—a view he had gotten rather used to over the past couple of months. A view that he would be leaving behind.

Gar paused in his thoughts. He smiled.

A fang glinted in the sunlight.

Leaning against the windowsill, Gar closed his eyes and allowed himself a quick breather before he started moving the other boxes out of his closet. Reaching into his pocket, Gar fingered the worn Titan communicator, green smudges and all—it wouldn't be too long of a breather.

"Taking a break?"

Gar would've jumped at the sudden voice, but didn't...his body wasn't ready to budge from its spot against the window. Instead he cracked open an eyelid, to be greeted with the sight of Raven's stoic face nearly nose-to-nose with his; though, maybe not so stoic. Her deep, violet eyes were crinkling slightly at the edges. Gar smiled again.

"Yeah," he mumbled, closing his forest-green eye again. "When did you get here?"

Raven frowned. She watched the muscles along Gar's shoulders tense as he shifted against the wall a little, and then relax as he let himself fall back again. The bright sun fell across half his figure, shining softly off his deep green hair and shimmering on his emerald-green arms and chest. Various mottles and smudges of darkness decorated his bared skin, a particularly harsh, scattered scab glaring on the nape of his neck and wrapping around to the front. Without thinking, Raven reached towards it, brushing the tip of her fingers against the healing wound. Feeling her touch, Gar opened both his eyes and looked first at her outstretched arm, and then her face. She ignored him.

"I hope this doesn't scar," she muttered faintly, more to herself than anything. She knew it would only be a reminder. A terrible reminder.

"Just a battle scar. Makes me look more manlier!" Gar grinned devilishly.

Raven glowered at Gar and his laughter trailed off. Sheesh, she hadn't even corrected his grammar.

Gar moved his gaze to the floor. "It's all that's left of her."

"_What?_"

Gar could feel Raven's eyes on him. "You heard me—it's...all that's left of her. These scars—they're her only true mark on this world now. A testimony to her pain and anguish, her love, her rage...everything else she left behind were lies."

"Gar." Raven's voice was hard, but not harsh. "One week ago, you and I flew to Chicago to spread her ashes over a grave was only hers in name. Instead of dying the day that headstone said she had died, she killed a clone of herself so she could take her insane self here to Jump City and focus on killing _you_. You gave her more closure than she _ever_ deserved. She needs no 'true' mark left behind on this earth."

Gar's smile was sad this time. He still didn't meet her eyes. "Maybe not, but...it's cruel, Raven. What happened to her—all because she gave her heart to someone, and he betrayed her. Probably without even knowing it, but he betrayed her."

With some researching, it had been easy to find out Melina Ragonu's past with Mark Logan. Reading the few, scattered and personal logs found in her lair and piecing that together with what she had said to Gar when she had captured him made it easy to figure out some of her feelings on the matter.

Raven's violet orbs probed Gar's face as he watched the ground by her feet intently. "Maybe so, but...in the end, she twisted herself. She twisted her love into something disgusting, into a fierce, unjustified hatred towards you. She was weak, and drove _herself_ crazy. Nobody but she was to blame for that."

Gar didn't say anything for a second. Then softly, barely audible, "If the same thing happened to me, I'd be a liar to say I could be stronger."

Suddenly Gar felt Raven's fingers firmly but delicately grab Gar's jaw as she gently turned his face so he was finally looking at her. Her eyes bored into his. "You've already forgiven her," Raven said slowly, precariously. She dropped her hand back down to the scabbing on his neck, gingerly pressed against it. "You're already stronger than she ever was. Than most will ever be."

_Than I may ever be._

The two stayed absolutely still, gazing at each other. Gar smiled. They both had changed so much—and for the better, hopefully.

Silence. A comfortable silence.

A car horn blared in the distance.

"About two seconds ago." Raven broke the silence suddenly.

"...Huh?"

"About two seconds ago, that's when I got here," Raven said all matter-of-fact, finally answering Gar's first question. She stepped closer to an incredulous Gar, and brought her hand down to his shoulder, trailing down his arm until she reached his hand, and then intertwined her fingers with his. She met his gaze, and couldn't help but laugh quietly inside her head when she saw his cheeks flushed and he dropped his eyes, abashed. He was biting the corner of his lip, hiding a stupid-looking, pleased grin. "I teleported up through the floor. As usual."

Gar chuckled. He swung their linked hands back and forth. "...Wanted to see me that bad, huh?"

Raven raised an eyebrow. "As _usual_, I said. And more like I dropped by to make sure you weren't pushing yourself. Which," she glanced around the packed room, "I see was a waste of my time."

"What can I say?" Gar laughed. "I'm just as anxious to get back to you guys as you are to have me back."

For once, Raven didn't hand a biting retort right back to him. Instead, she gestured towards a two packages sitting on top a stack of moving boxes. One was wrapped in yellow wrapping paper, the other just duct-taped closed. "What're those?"

Peering over, Gar grinned. "Heh—care packages! Can you believe it? The yellow one is from Kassie and Michael, and the rest of their posse—has waaaay too many tootsie rolls in there, along with a book on puffins, a gift card to some comic book joint, a homemade CD-Rom of the latest Bad Boiz songs, and a custom-made Bad Boiz shirt! And the other one's from Steve. He's already back out traveling, so he wanted to give it to me before I moved out..."

"Are they all doing alright?"

Gar paused, and then nodded. "Yeah—Steve's making me call him every week. Kassie made me swear to at least email her every once and a while, and Michael said to let him in on any freebies the Titans could get..." Gar half-heartedly, then faltered.

Raven sighed. "Robin's not angry with you anymore, you know—wasn't really all that mad to begin with. But this is the way it has to be."

Gar looked back out the window, seeing the Tower out of the corner of his eye. About two weeks ago, Robin had found out that Kassie and Michael had discovered who Gar really was...and ordered Raven to wipe their memories. The argument between Gar and Robin that had followed had been a long and tense one, which pissed Raven off because Gar had still been bedridden most of the time—he didn't need the stress, in her opinion. So, in the end, the Titans had given the two civilians a choice: have their memories wiped by Raven so they wouldn't be in any future danger for knowing a Titan's secret identity, or live with the knowledge and the risk of either future danger or being held responsible for any intelligence slips regarding that Titan's identity.

Both chose the latter, of course.

For everyone else who had known Garfield Logan in Jump, however, he had been in an accident and was moving back to Maine to recuperate and be with the rest of his foster family.

"Everyone'll miss you, I'm sure," Raven added. "Especially that blonde girl..."

"Hey!" Gar's face snapped back around, looking at her, flustered. "I already told you, that was against my _will_—!"

He cut himself off when he saw a faint smirk on Raven's face.

"Wait. Was that...a _joke_?" Gar sputtered out. Raven didn't respond, just continued smirking, and Gar felt a grin play out on his face. "You..."

Suddenly Raven moved even closer to Gar, breaking apart there hands and hooking her hands around the back of his neck. "C'mon," she said lightly, "Let's take a break somewhere better than here. It's musty."

Before Gar could answer, he was enveloped in darkness...and then, blinding sun broke through as both he and Raven emerged onto the rooftop of the apartment complex, the Titan Tower sparkling on the bay, in view through the buildings and skyscrapers of downtown Jump City.

Raven broke away from Gar when they were done teleporting, wandering over closer to the edge. Gar followed slowly, taking in the view. Sun glinting off of glass and water, the city was aglow as well as hot. _Good old Jump_, Gar thought. Aloud, he contently breathed, "It's beautiful."

Although she nodded, Raven's attention was focused on something—or rather, _someone_—else. She focused on how he seemed just as aglow as the city, how his green hair ruffled in the slight breeze, how his face looked so gentle and _happy_...how bruises and scabs still lingered on his body, how new scars had joined the old ones...

How close she had come to losing him.

As Gar had collapsed that night, Raven's heart had nearly stopped. His name had been torn from her lips in a scream when he hit the ground, and she could only look on in horror as he was rushed off to S.T.A.R. labs soon after. For an agonizing four hours, his health steadily deteriorated as the doctors did all they could to help him—but to no avail. The Sakutia had progressed to its final, fatal stages; no one could do anything but watch. The doctors said it was only a matter of days, if he continued fighting for his life like he was now. That night had been the hardest night for the Teen Titans since the team's beginning, as they all looked on, distressed, distraught, sobbing, and terrified as one of their own slowly sank towards death, try as he might to resist.

Then, as suddenly as miracle seem to happen, Ragonu's hideout had been found under the city—and with it, all her blueprints, plans, and calculations for the project she had worked on with a certain Dr. Mark Logan; a project she had finished herself while he finished it in Africa. Within that project laid the "cure" to Sakutia.

After that, it had been a race against time as Cyborg, Robin, and a team of top-notch scientists and doctors worked to finish the contraption that could save Gar's life. Even _Batman_ dropped by at one point, giving his time and resources to help with the construction, dragging along the Martian Man Hunter from the Justice League.

The blueprints were exact and detailed, the best the team could have wished for—without them, even if it had been discovered how to save Gar, it might have taken weeks to come up with and build the radiation emitting machine. But in the end, it only took two days of round-the-clock working. With bated breath, everyone had waited to see if now _it_ would work.

It did.

Funny how the woman who held so much contempt for him, who wanted him to suffer so much, who wanted him so _dead_, had in the end been the one to save him.

Starfire started bawling with happiness as soon as Gar's skin started turning green. Cyborg had choked up, and Robin had literally collapsed to his knees. The doctors had nodded approvingly and the scientists had cheered. Steve had started sobbing. Raven nearly cried, but refrained herself from doing so since she knew she would probably blow up the ward if she did. Even the ever-stoic Batman had found himself relieved.

From then on it had been smooth sailing as Gar remained in bed as the worst of his injuries healed. When he woke up, he had woken up in a bed at the Titan Tower's medical bay.

With Raven smiling at him.

Throughout the entire ordeal, only two people had stayed with him continuously at the lab hospital, never leaving Gar's side even when being threatened by the doctors: Steve had been one of them. The other had stayed with him the whole time he was at S.T.A.R., as well throughout all the ambulance rides, all the gurney rides between rooms, and the whole time he was in the medical bay at the Tower.

Raven had understood Gar's last words before he passed out that night.

She had been there to return them when he opened his forest green eyes again.

Now she stood, watching him as he watched the city, and an indescribable, overwhelming feeling welled up in her chest—she had trouble keeping it in check.

"I love you."

Surprised, Gar glanced inquisitively over at Raven. Her cloak whipped around in a sudden gusty breeze, her hair tickling delicately across her face as she stared straight ahead, at the city below them. Gar's face softened. He closed the distance between them, enveloped her in his arms, made her look at him with a soft brush of fingers against her cheek. Hesitantly, he leaned forward, resting his forehead against hers. Her chakra dug into his skin, cool to the touch. She waited, her face still and expressionless.

He kissed her.

She met him more than half way.

"And I love you," he whispered when they finally broke apart.

Raven smiled at him, and Gar's heart burst.

A sudden roar and screech echoed through the streets beneath them, and after gazing at each other for a moment longer, they peered over the edge of the roof to see the T-car quickly, and loudly, approaching the building the couple was standing atop and followed closely by Robin's bike, two passengers riding. Gar grinned as he caught a glimpse of Cyborg's enormous grin through the windshield, and saw Starfire's body shaking with laughter as she clung tightly to Robin.

"As if they don't draw enough attention by themselves," Raven drawled. "Come on, I'll help you get your stuff so they don't have to waltz up here and cause more trouble."

"Yeah, we all know I'm the _real_ rabble rouser." Gar wiggled his eyebrows and winked.

Raven stared boredly at him; he didn't miss the slight twinkle in her eyes, though. "Sure—but that does remind me..."

Gar watched her curiously as she reached back into her cloak. Pulling out a rolled up newspaper, she gave a small, impish smile as she handed it to him. "Thought you might like that."

Wondering what she was getting at, Gar carefully unrolled the newspaper. Upon seeing the first story on the front page, Gar grinned and laughed out loud. There were two pictures: one of him and the rest of the Titans three days ago, when they had gone to their favorite pizza place for dinner, and the other a close-up of him transformed into a green hawk, darting away from an enraged, ketchup-covered Cyborg jumping up from his seat with outstretched hands. The words above the pictures were big and bold, as if daring anyone to debate their authenticity:

'**GREEN TEEN HERO SPOTTED: BEAST BOY BACK IN ACTION!'**

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The End

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